Omniverse Chronicles  Book I: A New Kind of Hero
by MrBlack103
Summary: Ratchet & Clank discover a boy of unknown origins on Veldin. Little do they know, this boy will soon rise to be the epicentre of events that will shake the very foundation of existence to its core.
1. Welcome Mat

**Welcome Mat**

_Well, being a bit of a newbie round here it seems some of my original formatting didn't come through. Hopefully the 'new' version (haven't changed the content at all) should fix that. Anyway, thanks for the kind reviews guys. It really does give you a sense of encouragement when the first thing you've written since year 6 is received positively. Also, please do let me know if I have a slip-up or two in regards to canon. Place names, characters, plot holes, stuff like that. I'm fairly good at this stuff but I'm by no means flawless._

The Kyzil Plateau, planet Veldin. If you were asked to describe it in one word, that word would be _reliable_. You could rely on it to be dry, rely on it to be hot and, because of its tendency to be made up entirely of rocks, you could rely on the fact that it possessed no comfortable place to park your behind. The Plateau had survived invasions, bombardments and even the odd planet-destroying laser, but it had been and always would remain reliably hot, dry and uncomfortably rocky…

_BANG!_

…which was not to say that fate would stop trying to break the Plateau's perfect record.

A few seconds after the violent noise, a bright point of light appeared over the Plateau. It rapidly expanded, then disappeared, leaving only a dark shape, rapidly falling towards the ground.

"Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah-"

The shape's enthusiastic distress call, also known as a scream of terror, was cut off by the welcoming embrace of the Plateau…

_CRUNCH._

…But not _too_ welcoming.

* * *

><p>Elsewhere on the rust red Kyzil Plateau lay an unassuming garage, from which two very bored voices carried out onto the flats.<p>

"Hand me my wrench, would you Clank?" the first of the voices said. It emanated from underneath a sleek red starfighter, which looked rather out of place amongst the other contents of the garage, which were mostly rusty and crumbled.

"That would be rather unproductive at the current time, Ratchet" replied the small boxy robot whom was sitting on a nearby couch, occupied with the holoscreen in front of him. A yellow, furry figure with facial features that made him look like a cross between a rabbit and a cat abruptly emerged from beneath the shining vehicle. Grease covered every inch of his worn blue jumpsuit.

"What? You don't want to peel your optical sensors from the Science Channel for two seconds?" Ratchet accused.

Clank turned to face Ratchet with his green mechanical eyes narrowed.

"That is correct. However, it is not the reason I do not wish to present your wrench to you"

Ratchet had to restrain himself from shouting.

"Then what _is_ the reason?"

"You are holding it" Clank answered in a perfectly calm tone.

"Oh…" Clank returned his attention to the Science Channel, while Ratchet ducked back under the ship to distract himself from how stupid he felt. An hour of silence passed between the duo, broken only by the monotonous drone of the Science Channel's host and the tapping of Ratchet's operations underneath the ship. "Done!" Ratchet declared after tightening one last bolt in the ship's hull. He slid forward, stood up and admired his handiwork. "Ah, it's good to have her back again. Hey Aphelion, you can wake up now." Clank turned off the holoscreen and walked over to Ratchet when he heard the ship's systems spring smoothly to life, emitting a low humming sound. "Well, how do you feel?", Ratchet queried seemingly to nobody. A smooth, metallic voice with a slight echo to it answered from within the ship.

"All systems operating at one hundred percent." Over the past month, Ratchet had been restoring Aphelion to the state in which he had found her. After a crash on planet Quantos, she had undergone a complete restructuring and repainting at the hands of the Zoni. However, Ratchet found he preferred her original lombax design and set about reversing the changes. Of course, Aphelion herself was more than willing to have Ratchet reverse the changes, citing her original four-winged design as 'a lead contributor to intimidation tactics'. Ratchet suspected this was Aphelion's way of saying 'I was more badass that way', though he did not repeat it aloud.

"So, you ready for a test flight?" Ratchet queried.

"Affirmative". Ratchet waited expectantly for Aphelion to open her canopy to allow him access to her cockpit. This did not happen. Ratchet crossed his arms impatiently.

"Well, you gonna open up for me?"

"Negative" was Aphelion's blunt reply. Ratchet was beginning to get sick of living only with two machines for company. They never told him what he needed to know, Clank included. They answered questions, of course, but they never followed up with an explanation unless prompted to do so.

"_Why?_" Ratchet said simply through gritted teeth.

"You would get engine grease all over my new upholstery. Recommend you take necessary self-grooming action immediately". Ratchet stood there gaping at his ship. He couldn't believe his ship, _his ship_, had just ordered him to take a shower. Sure Aphelion was up-tight at times, but now she was sounding as if she believed she were his mother. Knowing there was no arguing, Ratchet stalked towards the bathroom, ears pointed back and fur standing on end.

* * *

><p>One shower later, Aphelion was cruising through the skies of Veldin, with Ratchet at the wheel. He was wearing his green Megacorp jumpsuit this time, at Aphelion's insistence. Clank had opted to stay behind – a documentary about the relationship between pi and the square root of negative one had just started on the Science Channel.<p>

"You're sure, Aphelion?"

"Scanners indicate no other craft in the area."

"No pirates?"

"Negative"

"Thugs-4-Less?"

"Negative" Ratchet hesitated with his next query.

"…Qwark?"

"_Negative"_ replied Aphelion very clearly, betraying her own relief at the absence of that imbecile. Ratchet didn't know what to say. Every time he had been out flying he had run across trouble in one form or another. It was difficult to resist the urge to break into a barrel roll right then and there.

"Finally, the hero gets some rest" Ratchet told the universe in general, slumping his shoulders. As though the universe heard, the onboard HD-800 holoscreen lit up with alert messages.

"Alert. Wounded being located. Recommend assistance" Aphelion declared.

"I just HAD to open my big mouth, didn't I?"

"Affirmative"


	2. I Was Right

**I Was Right**

"_What YOU doing here?"_

"_Um… same as you, I guess"_

"_You guessed wrong, Zandy. You're turning round and going back to school, Zandy"_

"_Don't call me that!"_

"_Or what? You gonna make us, Zandy?"_

"_Guys, come on, I don't want any trouble. I just want to hang out with you guys."_

"_YOU? Hang out with US? You haven't earned it Zandy. Think we need to teach you a lesson."_

"_Wh… What kind of… lesson?"_

"_The 'we teach you some respect' kind"_

"_Hang on… What's that behind you?"_

"_Nice try, Zandy, but we ain't letting you get away without your lesson"_

"_No I'm serious! What IS that?"_

The 17-year-old boy flicked his amber-orange eyes open, pushing the echoing voices from his mind. He was staring at a cloudy yellowish sky, but before he could think to himself _Why is the sky THAT colour?_ he noticed the pain. A sharp, deep pain that penetrated what felt like every inch of his body. Every time he took a breath, he nearly spasmed from the increased sensation of being impaled repeatedly by multiple sharp objects. The boy didn't notice the heat, the dryness, or the fact that he was lying on a flat, rocky surface. He was too preoccupied with imagining himself elsewhere, not feeling like he was being impaled. The boy was not too preoccupied with the pain, however, to miss the face that came into view, looking down at him from underneath bushy eyebrows.

"Hey! Hey! You okay, buddy?" Something about this face was strangely familiar to the boy, but he put that notion away while he searched his brain for an answer. When no answer came, he selected the default response.

"Urgh…"

* * *

><p>Back in Ratchet's garage, Clank was still watching the holoscreen "…Tonight, on <em>Physics Gone Wild<em>, we investigate Kerwan's mysterious floating grind rails. Then Grummelnet answers claims that their popular razor claws allow users to climb walls and finally, just why _do_ wrenches come back when you throw them? All that, seven P.M. on the Science Channel…" Clank's built-in communicator buzzed, and he reluctantly answered it.

"Is this important, Ratchet? _Nature's Mysteries_ is about to start. It is a special on leviathan souls"

"Yes, it's important. Listen, Clank, you know that supply of nanotech we have out back?"

"Of course"

"Well you need to get all of it out"

"_All_ of it, Ratchet? Five crates? Surely not even an army of YETIs could-" Ratchet cut him off.

"All of it" Clank did not doubt the seriousness in Ratchet's voice.

* * *

><p>Ratchet landed Aphelion outside his garage and carefully lifted the limp boy out of the passenger seat, into the garage and set him down on the couch. A pile of four glass crates was already nearby, glowing blue nanotech swirling around inside. Clank came out of the storeroom, wobbling about with the last crate, which was twice his size. He set it down beside the rest, and then looked over to the figure lying on the couch. "Oh dear…" Clank was surprised the boy was still breathing. Clank did not recognise his species. He closely resembled that of Captain Qwark's, only with five digits on each hand, and closer to Ratchet's size and proportions. The boy wore blue jeans and a grey t-shirt, and had a head of dark brown hair that came to the tops of his ears. What were shocking, however, were the injuries that the boy had sustained. Not one of his limbs and hardly any of his ribcage looked unbroken. At least he wouldn't die of blood loss – there were some dark stains on his shirt, but they were all fairly small and looked to have dried a fair while ago. "Where did you find him?" Clank asked Ratchet, who was already grabbing the nearest crate of nanotech.<p>

"Out in the middle of the Plateau. He was just laying there. He was conscious when I found him, but I didn't get any words past 'urgh'". Ratchet cracked open the first crate of nanotech with his wrench, making sure that its contents fell on the boy, but not any of the shards of glass. Nothing happened. The severity of his injuries, at least, should have lessened. "One crate was never gonna be enough anyway" Ratchet half-mumbled to himself. He then proceeded to repeat the process with two more crates, but still nothing happened.

"Ratchet… the nanotech is not working. Perhaps you should stop before something happens"

"Like what?" Ratchet moved to empty the fourth crate.

"I… do not know. His condition should be improving, but it is not"

"You think I don't know that?" Ratchet emptied the last of the contents of the fourth crate onto the boy, watching as the nanotech sank into his flesh, and disappeared. Still no results.

"Ratchet, this boy has just had four crates of nanites put in his body. Are you sure it is wise to proceed?"

"You got any better ideas, Clank?" Ratchet picked up the last crate and prepared to empty it. Clank's answer took a few seconds to arrive.

"No, I do not" Clank admitted, slumping his body and shaking his head.

"Then we keep going". Ratchet smashed the final crate open, and the nanotech sank into the boy once more. At first, nothing happened, but after a few seconds, the boy's torso rippled as his ribs snapped back into their original positions. Ratchet had to plug his sensitive ears as a chorus of sickening pops filled the garage while the boy's limbs straightened and became whole once more. Finally, the bloodstains on his shirt faded away as the nanites cleaned all of his wounds and sealed them over. After one final shudder, all was still and a perfectly healthy looking individual was lying, still unconscious, on the couch. Ratchet breathed a sigh of relief, and then a smug grin slowly crossed his furry face. "Well, I know this isn't the time, Clank, but this is a pretty rare occasion, so I have to say it – I was right and _you_", Ratchet knelt and prodded Clank on the shoulder with his forefinger "were wrong".

"It would… seem so", Clank admitted. Seeing the couch was now occupied, and the sun was setting, Clank went to the corner to shut down for the night, while Ratchet went to bed. "Good night, Ratchet".

"Night, Clank". Several seconds of silence passed, then just as Ratchet was about to close his eyes, the silence was broken.

"I'm still here, you know". Ratchet cringed.

"Good _night_, Aphelion", he growled.


	3. I Was Wrong

**I Was Wrong**

Clank's systems flickered to life when the first rays of Veldin's sun swept into the open garage door. Both Ratchet and Aphelion were sleeping and hibernating respectively. Clank then remembered the events of the previous day, and decided to check on the young male's condition. Not being tall enough to get a clear view of the couch, it took Clank a while to climb onto the armrest quietly, so as to not disturb its occupant. Once he was at a suitable vantage point, Clank looked down to where the boy had been lying overnight. What he saw confused, shocked and intrigued him all at the same time. Clank had seen some odd things in his time, but none matched what was right in front of him at that moment.

"Oh dear" was all Clank managed to say. He then set about waking Ratchet.

* * *

><p>Zander Renn woke up to find two faces staring down at him. He recognised the first of the two faces, the one with the bushy eyebrows that had watched him the same way earlier. The second appeared, strangely enough, to be made of metal. It was completely round, with a wide mouth and two very large glowing green eyes. Zander looked past the faces and realized he was indoors, since there was a bluish ceiling directly above him. Zander shuffled a bit, and was pleased to discover he was laying on something rather softer than the rocks he had previously been subjected to. Now that he thought about it, he no longer felt any of his previous pain either, though he did feel a bit <em>odd<em>. Zander looked back between the two faces staring down at him, expecting them to say something, but they just kept staring, as though he looked weirder than they did.

"Are you two just going to keep staring at me and making me feel awkward, or are you going to greet me?" Zander demanded, though not unkindly. They both immediately shook their heads and looked away, as though they had snapped out of a trance. The metal one was the first to respond.

"Please forgive us, sir. We did not mean to appear rude. We are just not sure what to think at the current time. You understand our confusion, surely". At the sound of his voice, something in Zander's head clicked into place. Now he knew why these two seemed so familiar. Memories of many hours of entertainment in front of his television flooded into Zander's mind all at once.

"Yeah, sorry pal. Look, let's start over. I'm Ratchet, and this is-".

"Clank", Zander quietly completed Ratchet's sentence for him.

"Great. He's heard of us already", Ratchet mumbled to Clank. He then looked back at Zander. "Look, buddy, uh… I don't… have a pencil on me right now. Okay?" This only served to confuse Zander.

"What are you talking about?"

"So you… _don't_ want an autograph?" Ratchet sighed. "That's a relief. I'm sick of being swarmed by fanboys every Saturday". Clank interrupted before Zander could respond.

"Ratchet? I believe there are more important things to discuss with him?"

"Right". Ratchet turned back to Zander. "What's your name, buddy?" Zander took a while to respond, put off-balance by the sudden change in topic.

"Zander Renn", he replied nervously.

"Well, Zander, have you looked in a mirror lately?" Clank rummaged around in a hatch on the front of his chest and pulled out a hand mirror, presenting it to Zander. As Zander reached out to grab it, he noticed for the first time, since he had not changed his posture since he woke up, that his hand was black. Not only that, but it was covered completely in short fur. Zander, for the next few seconds, stared blankly at it. Then he remembered the mirror, and what Ratchet meant by it. Sudden panic welled up inside Zander's chest, and he hurriedly, almost aggressively, took the mirror off of clank. Before he could turn it around to face himself, Clank gained a hold of it again.

"Zander, I think it would be wise for you to calm yourself before using the mirror. Try breathing". Zander took Clank's advice and took three deep breaths. This did nothing to calm him.

"Just hand over the mirror!" he demanded. Clank reluctantly handed it back. Zander had already guessed what he would see, but that did nothing to relieve the shock of the face that stared back at him from the mirror's surface. He did not see his familiar pale, thin face with an untidy mop of light brown hair crowning it. Instead, he beheld a rounder complexion covered in black fur and centered with a dark brown catlike nose. The most obvious change was Zander's large, pointed ears sitting high on his head, swept backwards and likewise covered in fur that was black as night. Zander reckoned the only familiar feature that this _stranger_ possessed were his amber eyes, which now seemed to glow in contrast to the darkness surrounding them. As though to confirm what his eyes told him, Zander reached up with his right hand and ran his fingers along the unfamiliar contours of his ears and frowned curiously at the new sensation.

"Look on the bright side, buddy, you've just double the numbers of an endangered species!" Zander expected himself to immediately have a panic attack and start hyperventilating, but surprising himself he simply sat up and put down the mirror.

"You are taking this quite well, Zander", Clank stated simply.

"How did this happen?" Zander asked quietly. "Why am I a..." He hesitated with the rest of his sentence, as though it would seal his doom "lombax?"

"We do not know", Clank told him. "We were hoping that _you_ would be able to explain your transformation". Before Zander could confirm his ignorance, Ratchet spoke up.

"Uh, Zander? You might want to get off your tail. It'll go numb in a few minutes. Trust me, I speak from experience". Zander took a while to sort out what Ratchet meant by 'his tail'. Then it clicked.

"I have a tail?" Zander stood up abruptly and span around several times, trying to find it. Unknown to him, he only managed to knock over both Ratchet and Clank. After thinking to reach behind himself to grab his tail and taking a few moments to inspect its end, which resembled an elongated pompom, Zander noticed the two individuals sprawled on the floor. "I guess this is going to take some getting used to", he concluded

_Well there's my latest chapter. Believe it or not, I do have a fairly good idea of where I'm heading with this. Zander's transformation does have some degree of reasoning and purpose behind it._


	4. What's a Lombax to Do?

**What's a Lombax to Do?**

Clank watched as Zander poked his only remaining berry on his plate with a fork absent-mindedly. He was beginning to grow concerned for Zander's well-being, especially given his _unique_ situation. That morning, after Zander, Ratchet and Clank had gotten over the initial shock of the strange turn of events, Zander had seemed to withdraw from his surroundings, preferring to sit on the couch staring at his feet. He had only gotten up once to thankfully receive a plate of imported fruit for lunch from Clank. This struck Clank as odd, seeing as Zander took his transformation so well. Any other being would likely have fainted on the spot. Clank expected Zander to at least walk about the garage or gawp at Aphelion's weaponry, as he had seen plenty of other organics do.

_Perhaps his shock was simply delayed_, Clank thought to himself. He decided to attempt to bring Zander out of his apparent self-pity.

"Zander? Are you all right?"

"What? Oh, yeah, I'm fine Clank, just gotta think things over is all". Clank turned and watched Ratchet polishing his wrench for a while. He then turned back to Zander, lowering his voice.

"You are not just thinking of this morning, are you?" Zander didn't respond. Clank reckoned that if Zander wanted to talk about what was bothering him, he would in his own time. Clank then thought of a way to bring the black lombax out of his shell without prying. "Have you ever played galactic chess, Zander?" Zander raised his eyes quickly, a movement which was also emulated by his ears.

"I've played regular chess. Is it much different?" Clank was pleased with Zander's sudden interest.

"It works around the same basic principles, but it is quite different. Would you like me to teach you?"

"Yes, please".

* * *

><p>Four hours later, Clank was pondering his next move, and his options were surprisingly limited. Clank had never previously experienced difficulty in besting an organic opponent at galactic chess. Ratchet himself had given up even trying long ago. Even machines often fell to Clank's skill in the game. But in Zander, Clank had met his match. Zander had beaten him three out of four times; the other game being Zander's first and ending in a stalemate. It was not that Zander displayed any particular experience with the game. He often made mistakes in regards to the rules, but each time he fell behind Clank one step, he managed to pull a move so daring, so unexpected, that he recovered his lost ground and some more. Right now Clank was deciding between moving his scoutbot to block Zander's Blargian snagglebeast, or taking Zander's mutant swamp fly with his extermibot, at the risk of having his own piece taken in turn. Clank decided on the latter.<p>

"Checkmate", Zander declared calmly as he moved the alien snapper that had stayed in its original position for the entire game. The piece which Clank put in danger had not been touched. Clank stared in disbelief, just having had his pride hurt for the fifth time in a row. "Rematch?" Zander challenged, clearly aware of how new losing was to Clank.

"No, thankyou Zander" said Clank distantly, finally admitting defeat.

"That's a relief. I didn't have any more plans left". Clank simply glared. "In all seriousness, Clank, thanks for this. I was beginning to get bored of contemplating life, the universe and everything. It's quite depressing, you know. Plus, your reaction from the tie to the first game was priceless". Zander paused before continuing in a more serious tone. "To answer your earlier question, you were right, I wasn't thinking about, well, _this_", Zander said, raising his tail into Clank's view. He had quickly gotten control of his new body, and actually seemed to enjoy having the array of body language options made available by his ears and tail. "I was thinking about _how_ it happened, and _how_ I got here, because until I find that out, I can't really get back home to my family. What would they think if they saw me like this? Normally I wouldn't be so depressed over having to find out these things, but not having a _clue _on where to start, it makes me feel… aimless".

Clank finally understood. Zander considered himself to have no purpose, no goal to strive for. For lack of better words, he had no programming. He wondered whether he would have felt the same had Sigmund not been there to tell him what needed doing when he found himself in the Great Clock for the first time.

"You are still not telling me everything, are you Zander?" Clank accused. Zander made no reaction.

"No, I'm not", Zander said matter-of-factly. Clank decided to change the topic, knowing he couldn't pursue the matter any further.

"Where are you from, Zander?" The other took some time to respond, apparently caught off-guard by the question.

"There's not much to say about it, really. My home planet is called Earth; it's in the Milky Way galaxy. It's got bunch of different climates, depending on where you live. Its only sentient species call themselves human. I… _used to be_ one of them, I guess", Zander finished, looking at his feet again.

"The Milky Way galaxy?" Ratchet unexpectedly interrupted, emerging from within the restroom. He had apparently been listening. "Who calls their galaxy the Milky Way? That's a stupid name. Why do they call it that?"

"They named it that because, from the surface of Earth, it looks like milk flowing across the sky or something. Earth is at its outer reaches. But yeah, I agree, it's a pretty stupid name". Clank resumed with the query he had planned before Ratchet had interrupted.

"It is strange that I have never heard of your planet, or your galaxy, Zander. How far is it from Solana?" Zander suddenly looked on-guard at this question, but quickly hid it and answered after careful consideration.

"Honestly, Clank, I don't know. I've never even seen a map of either galaxy, let alone both at once".

"Could it be in another dimension?" Ratchet ventured.

"Impossible. How else would Zander know of us?" There was then an uncomfortable silence as Ratchet and Clank looked to Zander for a response.

"Well, it's a valid theory" was all he had to say. Both the others appeared mildly satisfied by this response, but pursued it no further. Veldin's sun was again setting, so all three beings went to their respective resting places for the night. Zander took special care not to sit on his tail.

_Wow, two chapters in one day eh? I just felt really determined to finish up with this somewhat stale section, plot-wise. Sorry if the humour's lacking a bit. I tend to only add jokes as they occur to me. Next chapter will hopefully reveal a bit more about Zander's past, and why he's avoiding questions. Also, I do have valid explanations for our Earth (for it is indeed ours) and the R&C universe existing on the same timeline. Everything has a purpose…_


	5. Deliberations

_Before I enter the new chap, I just want to thank Blazichu (do you prefer Blazy?) for his/her very honest and helpful review. Firstly, it feels great to know I 'converted' a non-believer in OCs. Just a warning, though – Zander is set up as the main protagonist, so hopefully I can still keep you around. Secondly, to be compared Douglas Adams? Wow. I'm not sure I deserve even a vague reference. Thirdly, about the inconsistency in narration style, it's a completely valid point. I'll try to keep that in mind as I continue. Quite relieved my grammar is up to scratch. Funny how the better you are at it, the more you worry about mistakes. I'm somewhat surprised that you think Ratchet is in-character and Clank is not. I thought that if anything I had it the other way around. If you find a particular Clank section you don't like, that might help me to understand a bit. Again, reviews like this are very helpful, so keep them coming!_

**Deliberations**

That night, Zander got little sleep, stuck as he was in an inward debate.

_I'm not going to be able to keep this charade up forever. I'll have to tell them eventually_, he reminded his imaginary opponent sitting across the imaginary table, which had taken the imaginary form of his human self.

_But what will they think if they find out? Are you just going to say 'excuse me, but you're either completely imaginary, or there's someone spying on your every move and turning it into a game?' _it retorted.

_I don't know! You tell me!_ Zander thought back, agitated.

_First rule of debating – don't support your opponent's argument. Besides, I'm a figment of your imagination, remember? If you don't know, I certainly don't._ Zander was beginning to hate this other him's undeniable logic. He decided to fight the logical with the illogical.

_This is all probably an insanely twisted dream, anyway, so it wouldn't matter no matter what I told them. _It didn't work.

_And if it's not a dream?_

_Stop saying stuff that I know is true! Stop it!_

_That does tend to happen when you argue with yourself. It's not my fault._

_Oh, just shut up! _The imaginary him faded away. Zander then felt a wave of despair wash over him. _Even with the _thing_ out of the way, what am I supposed to do? Am I just going to keep leeching off Ratchet and Clank forever? I've got to face it – while I'm here, I'm dead weight._ Zander, noticing that he was again panicking, breathed deeply to calm himself. _Alright, let's look at this objectively – What are my problems?_

_Finally, he starts making some sense! _Zander's imaginary self exclaimed.

_I thought I told you to go away! _Zander complained.

_Oh, that was the other you. He debates. I'm the one that actually helps_, the other Zander proclaimed.

_Whatever. So what _are_ my problems?_

_One. You are stuck on Veldin, with no idea how to get back home._ Zander nodded mentally.

_Okay, but there's no way of finding out how I got here, so I might as well work on something else in the meantime_, Zander concluded thoughtfully. The helping-him continued.

_Two. You are now a lombax, with no idea how you got like that._ Zander thought about this for a while.

_Perhaps if I find the right person they'll be able to put my under a microscope or something and tell me what the problem is?_

_It's a start_,_ you've got a universe's worth of scientists and such available_, the helping-him confirmed before continuing. _Lastly, you are in a world where everything is from a long line of video games, and you don't know how to break it to said world's inhabitants whilst maintaining their trust._

_Uh… can we leave that one til later? _Zander asked nervously.

_Okay, but don't come crying to me when it goes awry_. The helping-him disappeared without prompting. Zander smiled to himself, then went to sleep, knowing that now he at least had something he could do.

_Time to find out how the heck this happened_, Zander thought as he drifted off.

_Sorry about the short chapter, guys. The next one will be far more interesting, I promise. It may just feature a certain person whose name starts with 'A' and ends with 'L'._


	6. Computer Technician, Not a Biologist!

**I'm a Computer Technician, Not a Biologist!**

Zander clumsily tumbled out of Aphelion's cockpit and fell to his knees on the concrete landing pad.

"Ooh, I think I'm gonna be sick", he moaned. Ratchet and Clank were far less awkward in their disembarkation.

"Artificial gravity does that to you, buddy", Ratchet said, pulling out his wrench from Aphelion's storage compartment. "You'll feel like it never happened in a few minutes". At Ratchet's words, Zander forced himself to stand up and look around. He gasped. In every direction, massive skyscrapers towered over him and lanes of air traffic trailed into the horizon. He then looked down at his feet, and wished he hadn't. Aphelion had landed on a platform jutting out from one of the skyscrapers and he was but a pace away from falling into what seemed to be a bottomless pit, the lower levels of the skyscrapers concealed by fog. Ratchet, noticing his vertigo, told him "Should have kept your eyes open on re-entry. Welcome to Metropolis. Bit of a change from Veldin, huh?"

"Yeah…" was all Zander managed to say, ears drooping slightly in submission to how _big_ this place was. His 60cm television back home had _not_ done this place justice. He wasn't about to let on about that last part, though. His train of thought was interrupted by a rough, mechanical voice with a southerner accent.

"Hey! You can't park here! It's reserved for VIP's only!" Zander turned to the sound of the voice, and saw a large bipedal robot with a blaster for one of his arms running towards him. It stopped, raised its blaster arm threateningly, then declared "Now just you hop back in that fancy ship and get your behind off of this platform before I give you a ticket!"

"Stand down, trooper!" commanded Ratchet as he came out from behind Aphelion.

"Sarge, sir yes sir!" responded the Galactic Ranger as it stood to attention, lowering its blaster arm and raising the other one in salute.

"That's better. At ease". Following this line, the Ranger dropped his salute and fell to his knees, shaking.

"P-please don't court-martial me, Sarge! You… you remember all the great times we had together on Aridia? You know me, J12?" Zander stifled a laugh at the sudden change of persona of the Ranger, who appeared to take no more notice of him, continuing to plead with Ratchet for forgiveness. "C'mon, Sarge. For old times' sake, huh?"

"Whoa, whoa, no need to get all like that on me. Tell you what – We'll call it even if you give us an escort to sector fifteen. Can you handle that?"

"Yes, sir!" J12 then raised his weaponless arm to his vocoder and issued orders into it. "Calling all Galactic Rangers within the vicinity! Code red thirteen! Repeat! Code red thirteen!" Zander leaned over to Ratchet and spoke quietly.

"Don't you think he's overdoing it a bit?" Ratchet rolled his eyes in response.

"These guys haven't had anything this exciting to do since that business with the biobliterator. Let them have their fun". After this, it was but several minutes of waiting in silence before the rumbling of a large vehicle was heard overhead, swiftly followed by the faint voices of more Rangers.

"Geronimo!"

"Wha-aaaaa!" Zander watched as five Rangers fell from their boxy drop ship with a rather profound lack of coordination. Some executed their dive gracefully, while others flailed their limbs and resultantly had a very haphazard flight path. One by one, they all reached the platform, all but one managing to activate the rockets in their feet in time to slow their descent. The one that didn't landed with a loud clunk.

"I'm okay! I'm okay!" the Ranger said as he got up and took his place in the formation around Zander, Ratchet and Clank. The whole group then marched forward through a large doorway in the side of the skyscraper that the platform was attached to. Whilst they all moved through the large deserted hallway beyond, footsteps echoing off of the walls, Ratchet pulled out his constructo pistol and handed it to Zander. Zander gave him a puzzled look as he accepted it.

"Sometimes around here an escort isn't enough. You've used a weapon before?"

"No".

"Just point and shoot, buddy, just point and shoot. I've set it to stun, so don't worry about killing anybody". Zander was still confused.

"But why this and the escort, anyway?" The group was coming to the end of the hallway, and Zander was unable to see beyond the exit due to the glare. One of the Rangers answered for Ratchet.

"The deadliest, most vile enemy you'll ever face in your life, kid". Everyone stepped out into a massive courtyard with an oversized statue of Captain Qwark in the centre. Filling the courtyard was a mass of males of every species imaginable even some robots, staring at Ratchet possessively. Some were even wearing fuzzy lombax ears. "Fanboys".

"No sudden movements", another Ranger whispered, clearly nervous under the gaze of the crowd of silent fanboys. The group edged carefully through the crowd, the Rangers carefully nudging any that came too close away. This proceeded for an agonisingly long amount of time. When they were finally on the other side of the crowd, every one of its eyes still boring into Ratchet, Clank spoke up for the first time from his perch on Ratchet's back.

"That was close. Remind me why we could not use a holo-guise?"

"_Now_ he tells me" squeaked Ratchet, still shaking with fear.

* * *

><p>The rest of the group's journey through the bustling squares and vertigo-inducing skybridges of Metropolis was uneventful, aside from one encounter with a certain shady salesman wanting to sell a full body waxinator to Zander. Fortunately, he knew what its function was, so he politely declined. The Rangers stopped in front of a large building with a statue of a tubby alien in a coat, holding a wrench over his head.<p>

"I just hope he's in", Ratchet sighed, "or this will have been a dangerous sightseeing trip". Clank detached from Ratchet's back and the three walked through the entrance to the building. Above the entrance was some lettering that read, in Clank's words since Zander could not read it, "Big Al's Roboshack". The interior consisted of piles of junk and electronics, and a simple desk, behind which stood Big Al himself. He was attending to an elderly Cazar male.

"No, sir, there is nothing wrong with your personal assistance bot. The light is _meant_ to be blinking red", Al told his customer agitatedly in a voice that sounded as if his nose was blocked.

"The nerve! Just wait until I get onto your employer about how you treat your customers!" The clearly unhappy Cazar left the premises as violently as one with a walking frame could, making sure to shoulder past Zander. At the entrance, he mumbled something along the lines of "Youth these days…" and then disappeared around the corner. Al glared after his ex-customer for a while, then declared to no-one in particular. "Honestly, my talents are wasted here!" He then noticed the trio standing awkwardly inside the entrance.

"Ratchet? Clank! Finally, someone I can have an intellectually mature conversation with. Come on in!" Clank and the lombaxes trotted over to the desk.

"It is nice to see you again, Al", greeted Clank. Al beamed at the group, raising his eyebrow as his gaze fell on Zander.

"I would ask you what brings you here, but I believe I may have already found why. Please do tell me that his intellect is worthy of my company". It was Zander's turn to raise an eyebrow this time. Clank spoke up again.

"I… would not worry about that", he said nervously.

"Zander beat Clank at galactic chess", Ratchet chipped in bluntly. Al froze, and stared at Zander with newfound interest.

"He did, now did he?"

"Three times in a row", Ratchet added, enjoying the look he was getting from Clank. Al simply gaped, then caught himself.

"Now I _am_ impressed. Zander, is it?"

"It is", confirmed Zander.

"So here is my burning question – Why was I under the impression that Ratchet was the last lombax in this universe?"

"It's a long story, Al", Ratchet said. "Can we take this out back?"

"Of course. It's a slow business day, anyway". Al glared out the entrance again, as though the elderly Cazar would walk in any second and continue to abuse him. "Slow being the operative term". Al then walked over to the left wall and pressed a large blue button. The entrance to the Roboshack closed with a clang, and the group followed Al through the door behind his desk.

* * *

><p>One long story later, Ratchet finished filling Al in on the situation. They were all sitting on various pieces of electronics in a kind of workshop, with the exception of Al, who made sure to grab his only chair as soon as he entered the room. Al turned to Zander, who was sitting to his left.<p>

"So you, as a species other than lombax, arrived on Veldin by some unknown method in an injured state, were healed by Ratchet and Clank, turned into a lombax overnight, and puzzled at your transformation you decided to come to _me_ for answers". Al almost lost his breath reciting the entire thing.

"That's about it, yes". Al suddenly looked confused and, surprisingly, somewhat annoyed.

"Are you crazy?" Ratchet, Clank and Zander were all stumped by his response.

"Pardon?" ventured Zander.

"Do you seriously think _I _would have the answers? I'm a computer technician, not a biologist!" Zander, in realisation of their mistake, hung his head, ears drooping. Clank watched him for a time, then turned back to Al.

"Al, this is very important to Zander. We could think of no other who might know where to start. Is there nothing you can think of? Even a theory?" Clank asked quietly. At this, Al seemed to withdraw. He looked at the ceiling, scratching his chin and whispering who knows what to himself. Finally, he nodded and said;

"I do have _one_ theory. You did say that neither you or Ratchet had ever seen his original species before, didn't you?"

"Yes. He looked most similar to Captain Qwark, but was still very different", Clank answered.

"Well, this _is_ just speculation, but what I think happened is the nanites that you administered Zander to heal him didn't know what species he was either, so they did the most logical thing possible". Hearing this prompted Zander to look up again.

"And what would that be?" he asked hopefully.

"I think the nanites looked for the closest genetic match within the vicinity for what you _should_ look like, had you been uninjured. Naturally, that was-"

"Ratchet", Zander completed.

"Precisely", Al confirmed with newfound confidence. "How far the transformation went or whether it is permanent could be anybody's guess, though – As I said, I'm not a geneticist". Zander felt a sense of hope well up deep down in his stomach. This was not a solution, nor even a question. However, it was a _lead_. Something to investigate. To _pursue_. Al continued. "For the true answer, I think you need to find someone with more experience in genetics".

"Well, uh… I might know someone", Ratchet said nervously. Mustering his confidence, he continued. "She probably would know what's happened, seeing as she's already engineered biological transformations herself". Zander grew to suspect who he was talking about, piecing his clues together. "Problem is, I have no idea where to look for her right now".

"Who?" Zander asked, even though he knew the answer already.

"Angela Cross".

_Well, there you go guys. Sorry for the wait, I hope the length'll make up for it. Thanks for R&R'ing! Oh and don't worry, the fanboys will get their chance... just you wait._


	7. The Fanboys' Revenge

**The Fanboys' Revenge**

Zander was elated. In the last five minutes, he had a possible explanation as to his transformation into a lombax. Not only that, but a possible solution had presented itself, no matter how unreliable it was.

"Angela", Zander said whilst nodding to himself, as though to make this distant hope real. Drawing on his memories, he could not believe that he had not thought of her himself yesterday.

"Yeah", Ratchet went on. "It'll be a long shot at finding her, but if we do… If anybody can help, she can". Al coughed a bit and interrupted.

"Excuse me, but who are we talking about here?" he asked the group. Clank educated him.

"Ratchet and I met Angela years ago in the Bogon galaxy, under what circumstances I will not bother to explain. She had previously worked for Megacorp's genetics division and her expertise allowed the Protopet incident to be resolved. She went missing prior to Emperor Tachyon's assault on this very planet". It was a while before Al responded.

"Oh", was all he had to say. None of this was new to Zander, of course, but he decided to play along anyway. He was still apprehensive about having to explain himself.

"So where do we start looking?" he asked Ratchet and Clank, in a suddenly bright mood. Ratchet answered this time.

"Last sighting of her was on Jasindu in Polaris, I think. Unconfirmed, but it's worth a shot". Zander, surprising himself, suddenly felt very nervous. Just three days ago he never even suspected all this could be real. Now he was about to travel between galaxies. He was also overwhelmed somewhat by how casually Ratchet had just alluded to by no means a short voyage.

"An intergalactic trip? Are you sure you guys want to do this for me? Don't you have hero business to attend to or something?"

"Do not worry, Zander. We are here to help", Clank dismissed. He then faced Ratchet. "There is just one problem, Ratchet – Aphelion is incapable on intergalactic flight, and I doubt you wish to get a lift from a freight ship again". Ratchet cringed at the all-too-recent memory of his and Clank's long return to Solana onboard a cramped, stinky, rusted ship with only the hard floor and a few tetramites for company. Such ships were designed for robot operation, and as such they did not have any living quarters.

"Don't sweat it, pal, I've got a plan", Ratchet assured with a sly smile.

"Not the gravimetric warp drive", Clank pleaded.

"No, not the gravimetric warp drive", Ratchet said, laughing. Zander suppressed his own laugh, hoping not to give away his position. When Ratchet finished, he stood up at beamed at Al. "Well, Al, thanks for the help. It's time we got going".

"Can't I come? As I said, business around here is… slow", Al said, mumbling the last part.

"Be glad to have to with us, pal, but I'd rather not stick two lombaxes, a robot _and _a nerd in a single cockpit, if you know what I mean". Al sagged his shoulders disappointedly.

"Makes sense, I guess", he sighed. He huffed and then collected himself. "Nice seeing you guys again", he said, moving to lead them out of the workshop. As the four filed out into the main shop, Zander pulled Al aside.

"Thanks a bunch, Al" he said, patting him on the shoulder. "I won't forget it". Al seemed to regain a bit of life at these comforting words, then puffed out his chest and announced proudly;

"It was only part of my solemn duty as an honorary member of the Ratchet fan club, Zander". Near the main entrance, which was still closed, Ratchet's ears pricked up and he turned around.

"_What_ did you say?" he demanded.

"I was the founding member. Didn't I tell you? As soon as you walked in the door, I hit the 'lombax alert' button. Every true Ratchet fan deserves a chance to meet you". Ratchet was suddenly on alert, pulling out his cryomine glove and switching it on. Zander, not for the first time that day, was confused by Ratchet's response. "Clank, get on my back. Zander, take the safety off your gun".

"What's wrong?" Zander asked. Ratchet hit the button to open the roboshack's main doors, which lifted to reveal a thousand screaming fanboys. The Rangers were desperately shoving them back from the entrance.

"_That's_ what's wrong", said Ratchet grimly. "Go!" The next few moments were a blur for Zander. All he remembered later on were grasping, clawing hands in every direction, and an overwhelming desire to keep moving forward.

As Zander sprinted across the landing pad with Aphelion at the far end, he risked a glance backward. Zander beheld a merciless wave of fuzzy lombax ears, bristling with arms brandishing what looked suspiciously like mechanical limbs. The Rangers were nowhere to be seen. For the first time ever, Zander realised his life was in danger. He willed his feet to carry him forward even faster. He leapt into Aphelion, who had already started her engine, alongside Ratchet and closed his eyes, preparing for the worst. He felt Aphelion lift off, the canopy close, and an unexpected dull thud. Opening his eyes, Zander found a fanboy staring straight at him, from the outer surface of the transparent canopy.

_Did he jump from the skyscraper? _Zander wondered with stunned amazement as Aphelion picked up speed, shaking the fanboy off.

"Well, _that_ was fun", Zander claimed sarcastically.

_My first 'action' sequence, eh? Hope I did it ok. Any guesses what Ratchet has in mind for intergalactic travel? You'll like this one, I promise. Well, if you've played UYA, anyway._


	8. Space, it's Huge

**Space. It's Huge.**

Zander _knew_ that space was huge. He had reminded himself of this fact countless times now. Yet somehow, he still could not fathom the vast emptiness that now lay before Aphelion and her crew of three. What made it worse was how boring space could be. Clank, seeing little point in using his power cells, had gone into hibernate mode behind the pilot's seat. Aphelion was handling the piloting and Ratchet was busying himself about scanning the blackness ahead for his intergalactic solution. All this left Zander with only two options – pondering the meaning of existence, or boredom. Since the meaning of existence gave him a headache these days, Zander had chosen the latter option. This had gone on for three hours, and Zander wondered if Ratchet really knew where his means of transit was, or even where they were themselves.

"I left it _somewhere_ out here", Ratchet had said about an hour ago. This had done nothing to ease Zander's lack of faith that they would find what they were looking for. To ease his sense of boredom, Zander tried counting the stars. He lost count at forty-two. His amusement at this particular number coming up only lasted for a few moments before he again realised how bored he was. Zander tried thinking of more ways he could amuse himself. Biting his nails wasn't an option, given he would only succeed in filling his mouth with fur. Neither was sleeping, as Ratchet had developed a habit of exclaiming "Look there! What's that?" every time Zander closed his eyes. It was usually just space dust on the canopy.

After much deliberation, Zander decided on trying to work out which of the stars was the brightest. Within moments, he spotted a star to his right that seemed a likely candidate. Just as Zander was about to look elsewhere to find a potential competitor, it winked out of existence, then flared back up again. If Zander had not been looking directly at this particular star, he would not have noticed its momentary lack of luster. Straining his eyes, Zander tried to work out what was abnormal about this star. He then noticed that a dark grey shape was drifting not far from it, apparently having just moved in front of the star and blocking its light. Zander couldn't quite make out what the object was, but it did seem to have a sense of symmetry about it.

"What's that?" he asked Ratchet, pointing at the mysterious object. Ratchet turned and looked to where Zander was pointing.

"I don't see…" Ratchet began, but he noticed the focus of Zander's curiosity before he finished. "That's it!" Ratchet exclaimed with excitement. Zander silently thanked whatever gods there were for the promise of an end to his boredom. Ratchet took the wheel and when Aphelion declared "Autopilot disengaged" steered her towards the object.

As the grey shape came into view, Zander's interest piqued. It was close enough now that it was very clearly some sort of starship. As more and more details came into view, Zander was able to make out A forward section attached to the main body by a narrow 'neck' and a pair of large downward-curving wings towards the rear. It started becoming obvious that this ship was of significant size as well, being at least several hundred meters long.

"Say hello to the Starship Phoenix", said Ratchet with pride as he circled Aphelion round to the ship's aft.

_Of course_, Zander said to himself.

"It's funny", Ratchet continued, "Since the whole Dreadzone mess I completely forgot she was mine. None of the lights are on, so it looks like nobody's messed with her. Just been drifting out here, I guess". Ratchet was now guiding Aphelion towards the hangar doors between the Phoenix's two main thrusters, which right now were dormant. As Aphelion got closer, the doors opened to reveal a spacious hangar, whose sole occupant was an old dark red starfighter. "My old star explorer! It's a while since I've seen _that_ old girl", Ratchet exclaimed as he positioned Aphelion next to the aged craft and landed. The hangar doors closed, leaving Ratchet and Zander in total darkness but for the subtle glow of Aphelion's controls and holoscreen.

"Did I miss something?" Clank asked, crawling forward in Aphelion's cockpit. As if in response, a line of powerful overhead lights in the hangar activated in sequence, each producing a low cracking sound as it did so. "I see you found the Phoenix", Clank stated. Ratchet went straight to business.

"Aphelion. What's the atmosphere reading in the hangar?"

"Twenty-five degrees Celsius. Breathable. A warning, though – It might smell a bit stale", Aphelion said in her usual aloof tone, opening her canopy so that the three could evacuate.

"Smell I can deal with", Ratchet stated flatly as they tumbled out. This time, Zander was more careful, and he managed to climb out of the cockpit with only a slight lack of grace. He took in his new surroundings. Zander found it a bit unsettling to go from being stuck in a cramped cockpit to having practically limitless freedom of movement in every direction. Still, it was a relief to be able to stretch his legs after all these hours. In regards to the Phoenix itself, Zander was awed. Every surface of every bulkhead glistened as if the ship had just been manufactured. Looking down the long hangar, Zander gained an appreciation for the ship's perfect symmetry. He had, in fact, seen all this before, but seeing it in person was breathtaking. Noticing Zander's expression, Ratchet commented "I was like that when I first boarded the Phoenix, too. She's a sight, all right". After letting Zander ogle for a few more moments, Ratchet spoke to Zander and Clank. "We can wait until after some sleep to work out how we're going to fly her with a crew of three. Come on. The crew quarters are this way" Ratchet prompted, leading Zander towards a door in the port side of the hangar with Clank scurrying along behind.

_I know, I know, pretty uneventful chapter, but Zander has to have a break from raving fanboys some time right? STAR-KID-AWESOME, well done on guessing Ratchet's solution. I really do think it's a shame so many great happenstances in some of the games don't get expanded upon, Ratchet's ownership of the Phoenix being one of them. Anyway, there's probably going to be a chapter or two of nothing much before the plot starts developing again, so hang in with me. Although, one side-plot has occured to me... I'll leave it at that for now. No spoilers!_


	9. First Flight

**First Flight**

_We're going to die_, thought Ratchet as he resisted the urge to cry out in fear. _We're going to die, we're going to die, we're going. To. DIE._ Normally he would have complete confidence in his ability to not die whilst in Aphelion's cockpit, but today was different. Today, Zander was in the pilot's seat. It wasn't that Zander was a bad pilot. He was perfectly capable of all the basic maneuvers, executing left and right turns, dives and climbs with competence. What made Ratchet nervous was that this was Zander's firstflight. _Ever_. Ratchet and Zander had woken up in the _Phoenix_ three hours ago to find Clank busy devising an autopilot program for its voyage to Polaris. Seeing he and Zander had nothing to do, Ratchet offered to let the other lombax have a runabout with Aphelion. Now he regretted that decision.

"So, uh, Zander, why didn't you tell me you hadn't flown before?" Ratchet asked with as little accusation in his voice as possible.

"You didn't ask", Zander replied smugly as he continued circling around the _Phoenix_. "Besides, I thought you would have worked it out by my stomach's reaction to the trip to Kerwan". In truth, Ratchet had completely forgotten about that. But he wasn't about to concede this to Zander.

"I thought you'd just never travelled at warp speed before". Zander appeared unconvinced, but let the subject drop. Ratchet resumed reminding himself that no matter how acceptable Zander's skills seemed to be, he would get them killed at any moment. Just as Zander passed the _Phoenix_'s prow, Aphelion interrupted Ratchet's thoughts.

"Incoming communication". Ratchet switched his attention to the HD-800 as it crackled to life and displayed an all-too-familiar face.

"Argh, this be Captain Slag, scourge of the galaxy!" the robotic head declared. Instead of a body, it was attached to a simple pole, which appeared to be held by someone offscreen from the way it bobbed about haphazardly. Another voice cut in.

"Scourge of *hic!* Polaris, that is, Cap'n! Remember we're in a new *hic!* galaxy now!" Ratchet recognised the newcomer as Captain Slag's first mate, Rusty Pete.

"Shut up, Pete! You're ruining my dramatic entrance!" Slag shouted.

"Aye-aye, Cap'n!" After a brief pause, Slag resumed his dramatic entrance.

"Surrender your big, shiny ship or face execution by horde of marauding pirates! You have five minutes" As befitted Slag's entrance, a large vessel only slightly smaller than the _Phoenix_ but bristling with weaponry dropped out of warp speed and moved within firing range. Ratchet rolled his eyes and opened a secure channel with Clank.

"Clank, you get all that?"

"Yes, Ratchet. It seems the pirates have not recognised us yet". Ratchet smirked.

"Advantage to us, then. Power up the _Phoenix_'s shields. Zander and I'll take care of Slag". With that, he ended the transmission. "Zander, as much as I trust your piloting skills, I think it'd be better if I took over".

"Be my guest", Zander said, gesturing to the wheel. The next few minutes consisted of declarations along the lines of "Hey, watch it!"

"Ouch! Get off my tail!"

"Hang on! My knee's caught behind the wheel!" Many tails trodden on later, the two lombaxes had switched places successfully. Ratchet felt somewhat more at ease, being in the pilot's seat once more. Specifically, he felt more at ease with Zander in the passenger seat. Slag-on-a-stick flashed onto the holoscreen again.

"My good grace has expired! Pete! Launch the boarding ships!" Three bulky craft exited the hangar in the side of the larger pirate ship and sped towards the _Phoenix_'s own hangar. Ratchet was totally unfased.

"Aphelion, tap into their radio chatter. I want to listen to this" he said, smirking. Then, pushing Aphelion's wheel forward, Ratchet pounced on the boarding ships. This first succumbed to a volley of blaster cannon fire. The second disintegrated in a swarm of missiles. Zander tightened his grip on the dashboard in front of him as Aphelion narrowly missed colliding with the third ship, prompting the unseen pilot to swerve into its larger host. The pirates' reactions to their losses came in over the radio.

"Cap'n! We've lost *hic!* the boarding ships!" said Pete, clearly astonished.

"I can see that, Pete!" Slag shouted back. Rusty Pete started sobbing all of a sudden. "What is it, Pete?"

"One of them pirates owed me a pint!" Pete said between sobs. "Wait a *hic!* minute! That fighter looks mysteriously *hic!* familiar…" Rusty Pete said curiously. Ratchet's smirk turned into a full on grin as he heard Slag gasp.

"Oh no… Not… Not the lombax! It's because of that scurvy rat we left Polaris in the first place! Attention crew! Every corsair for himself!" The space around the _Phoenix_ erupted into chaos as every escape pod in the pirate ship's hull jettisoned just before it retreated at warp speed. Then all was still.

"Well, that was fun", Ratchet said to Zander, still grinning from ear to furry ear. Then Clank's voice opened up on the radio once again.

"Ratchet, Zander, I have finished the autopilot program". Ratchet shook himself out of his giddy trance, then replied.

"Be right there, Clank".

Many apologies for the short, and rather late, chapter. I had writer's block for a while. The plot shall get back on track soon.


	10. I Dream of Power

**I Dream of Power**

_Zander approached a pair of large steel doors. Smoothly and silently, they slid apart to reveal a large darkened room, the limits of which seemed blurry to him. The silhouettes of unknown persons passed in front of him from one side of the room to the other, with apparent urgency. Panicked conversations reached Zander's ears, but he could make out none of their words. Directly ahead of him was a figure that seemed more pronounced than the others. It stood with its hands clasped behind its back, facing away from him. Seemingly of their own accord, Zander's legs carried him towards the central figure. It did not move as he approached, seeming to be totally focused on whatever was further ahead. Zander stopped within a distance that could be taken to be respectful and assumed as vertical a standing posture as possible. Then, words left Zander's mouth._

"_Sir, you wished to see me". Zander felt startled that the voice was not his own. It was deeper, and held little emotion, though it was shaky and seemed like it would break any second. The figure in front of Zander still did not move. After a painfully long time, it addressed him._

"_Chief engineer. I thank you for your punctuality" he stated, for the voice was unmistakably male. It had a quieter tone than the one Zander now used, but somehow commanded unyielding attention. Appearing to consider his words, the faceless figure paused. "I have need of your expertise and advice". Zander swallowed, though he was sure he did not do so consciously._

"_My knowledge is, as always, at your disposal sir" Zander followed. The figure appeared to hesitate again._

"_This may seem an odd question to ask, engineer, but what proportion of our power are we currently able to direct to the shields? That includes the emergency supply"._

"_Around ninety percent, sir". Something, Zander decided, was very familiar about this figure of authority, but at the same time he somehow knew that he had certainly not met this individual before, virtually _or_ in person_

"_You needn't keep addressing me with titles, you know. I am as mortal as you are". The voice was not unfriendly, but neither was it very 'chum-like'. It continued. "What would it take to dedicate one hundred percent to the shields?"_

"_In theory it would take a complete re-wiring of the power core, but you don't seriously intend to do that, do you sir? We'll be without our propulsion, weaponry, sensor arrays, interior lighting, not to mention damage control and life support". Zander half-expected the shadowy figure to instantly turn around and slap him, but they remained completely still._

"_Whether I do intend to do that depends on my next question. How long would it take for you and whomever else may assist to re-route the power?"_

"_An hour, at least"_

"_Have it done in forty-five minutes". Zander's voice, for he was clearly not in control of it, took a long time to respond. He felt his muscles clench, and a bead of sweat run down his neck._

"_Yes, sir". Zander turned around and marched back towards the door he had come through, and then the scene faded._

* * *

><p>Zander forced his eyes open groggily. A dozen thoughts raced through his head at once. Foggy memories, mysterious dreams and the will to simply fall back to sleep battled each other in his consciousness. As he slowly regained the capacity to think, one thought slowly entered his mind. It concerned why he was here, in a bed by a wall. Suddenly he remembered. The last thing Zander had heard.<p>

_Engaging_ _Cryosleep_, Clank had said. Zander worked out this must mean he was at his destination.

_Jasindu_, Zander thought. He swiftly jumped out of bed, but instantly regretted it. In his after-hibernation tiredness, he had forgotten one crucial fact. His bed was raised four meters off the floor. He failed to save himself, and consequently landed with a loud thud. _Ouch_, he said to himself. He was certainly awake now.

* * *

><p>"So tell me why I have to wear this again?" Zander demanded, looking down at his pudgy yellow disguise. He, Ratchet and Clank were in Aphelion's cockpit, flying away from the <em>Phoenix<em> towards the enormous green marble that was Jasindu. Ratchet was in the pilot's seat wearing a similar holographic appearance.

"The Kerchu shoot any outsiders on sight, so to avoid getting toasted, we've got to _not_ look like outsiders". Zander already knew the explanation, but he could not bring himself to accept his new, appearance.

"But why did it have to involve disguising myself as a giant jelly bean?" Zander demanded again, only getting more agitated. "Fur, I can handle, but this?"

"Calm Down, Zander" Clank interjected, ever the voice of reason. "It is only until we have left Kerchu City". Zander simply grumbled in response.

"Well when will we leave the city?" Zander spat impatiently.

"After we have found what we are looking for", Clank informed.

"And what exactly _is_ it we're looking for?" Zander continued, raising his voice.

"I do not know"

"That's _real_ reassuring, Clank".

Apologies for another short chapter, folks. It just seemed to be the best place to end this one and begin the next. Honestly, I'd rather do several shorter chapters than one that makes me use the 'search' function every time I want to edit a particular bit. Ah well, I feel this chap is a bit more interesting than the last, so everybody wins. Please do keep reviewing guys. Just the incentive reviews provide to keep going is great. Telling me how to improve is a bonus on top of that.

P.S. Sorry about the lame pun for a chapter title. I normally avoid such jokes like the plague.


	11. Common Decency

**Common Decency**

Aphelion came to rest on a landing pad in the centre of Kerchu City. As her engines powered down, Zander scanned the area outside of the cockpit cautiously. There were numerous Kerchu waddling about on tasks known only to them, apparently disinterested in the newcomers.

"So far so good" ventured Ratchet, making reference to the fact that the Kerchu were _not_ trying to kill them at the present moment. Zander nodded his head in response.

"Remember our story – we're two mute Kerchu and Clank is here as a communication aid". Neither Zander nor Ratchet knew the Kerchu language, so if they were drawn into a conversation, their cover would be blown away. Literally. "We weren't able to find a robot that could speak Kerchu, so we bought Clank as a secondary option". Clank narrowed his robotic eyes at Zander. Noticing Clank's displeasure, Zander added; "Clank can make up the rest of our story". Clank's glare immediately changed to a mischievous grin.

"I don't think that's a good idea" voiced Ratchet nervously as he pressed a button, prompting Aphelion to open her canopy. The trio jumped out with now well-practiced coordination.

Seeing that streets stretched off in every direction from the landing pad, they suddenly realised that they had no plan whatsoever for finding Angela, now that they were in fact on Jasindu. "So, uh… what now?" Ratchet whispered.

"Head to the nearest bar, obviously", Zander hissed back. Seeing the blank looks on both Ratchet and Clank's faces he explained himself, frustrated at their lack of insight. "You know, to ask the bartender for information, like pretty much every movie ever made". Clank then gave Zander a lopsided look that said plainly; _Are you serious?_ "Hey, have you got any better ideas?" Zander defended. Still giving him that same look, Clank sighed.

"Very well".

The trio found that the nearest bar was unexpectedly hard to find. Not because there were few bars, but because there were so many that they spent overly long debating which of them was actually nearest to the landing pad. Kerchu were, apparently, quite enthusiastic drinkers. Zander solved the debate with the same logic as he used to start looking for a bar in the first place.

"The good ones for information are the quieter ones where people just go to chat. You know, so there's lots of gossip and such. That eliminates _that_ one over there" he said, pointing at one bar which, after the sounds of raised voices and crashing, seemed to spit out a Kerchu through an already-broken window. The Kerchu in question seemed to be dead for a while, but then got up and swaggered away dizzily. Zander turned towards a bar directly across the street, which had no broken windows and had a room full of quiet booths just visible through the door. "This seems _much_ better". Seeing no argument against it, Clank led the 'mute' lombaxes in disguise through the entryway.

Unlike all the movies Zander had seen, there was no dramatic moment where the newcomers posed at the entrance to the bar and everyone stared. Surprisingly, nobody seemed to pay the trio any attention or care whatsoever, and continued in their hushed conversations. Zander even half-expected the tired-looking man behind the bar on the right to point at Clank and say "We don't serve their kind here", but no such confrontation was initiated. Instead, Clank led the other two straight to the bartender. He hopped with deceptive ease onto one of the barstools.

"Excuse me, good sir", Clank said to gain his subject's attention. The bartender turned around from cleaning a glass with a cloth to meet his eyes with Clank's.

"Hmm? A robot? We don't serve oil here, if that's what you're after", he said in a gruff but not unfriendly tone.

"I am not seeking beverages, sir. My two _very mute_ owners", Clank gestured behind him where Ratchet and Zander stood dumbly "are seeking information".

"Well, you came to the right place!" declared the bartender to the two holo-guised individuals, who continued to stand awkwardly, unsure of how to react. "Good thing you didn't go across the street, that guy actually _charges_ for information. Can you believe it? Where _did_ common decency disappear to these days, anyway? By the way, why are we speaking intergalactic standard? Not that I can complain about your manners, mind you" he finished with a slight wink at Clank, who pursued the point of their visit.

"We are grateful for your hospitality, sir. I am afraid I do not possess the great Kerchu language in my databanks, so I have resorted to the common tongue. Now would you by chance have heard of a lombax named Angela Cross? My owners have only recently been discharged from the asylum and are curious as to events since their incarceration". At the mention of 'asylum', Zander had to elbow Ratchet in the stomach to stop him from ripping Clank's head off. The bartender appeared not to notice.

"I don't know any Angela, but there was a girl lombax here a bit over four years back. Quite decent, as far as outsiders go. She even refused to return fire, bless her heart". The bartender shook his head, smirking. "'Course, nobody could be sure whether she was armed. She evacuated in a bit of a hurry. Like I said, quite a decent one". He then turned his smirk to a frown. "Not like that _other_ lombax. _That one_ blew up every one of us that saw him! I mean, we were only trying to scare him off, after all. If we hadn't been distracted by that pirate attack, we would've taught him some _real_ manners". Ratchet shifted uncomfortably. Zander laughed in his head. Clank continued his interrogation.

"A shame that outsiders know few manners indeed. Tell us, sir, what happened to this female?"

"Like I said, she and the other outsider left in a _real_ hurry, like any decent outsider ought to. Shot themselves with that gizmo we took possession of after".

"_Other_ outsider?" Clank asked.

"Yeah. Apogee, I think his name was. When we surrounded him and the lombax, he pulled out this gizmo, shouted something about finding the lombaxes, then they both got sucked into a black hole. Later our sciencey folks determined for certain it was a zombie death beam emitter". Zander felt downtrodden at this news. Regardless of whether Angela was dead or not, she was now beyond possible reach. With a sideways glance into Ratchet's eyes, he confirmed that he too had arrived at this conclusion. Clank seemed unperturbed, however.

"Tell me, sir, where did this take place?"

"On the East side of the City, in that old construction site that nobody's ever worked on for some reason". Ratchet rolled his eyes at this.

Clank was just thanking the bartender for his help and generally completing his suck-up act when a clearly drunk Kerchu wobbled past Ratchet, headed for the exit. Unfortunately for Ratchet, the Kerchu tripped and had to grip onto him for support, right on Ratchet's holo-guise's cut-off button.

"Shorry, Lombaksh", he said absently and walked out. The rest of the bar's patrons were not so passive.

"Outsider!"

"Get him!"

"It's that lombax!" came the shouts of a dozen angry Kerchu.

Ratchet cursed.

_Yay for a longer chapter (As far as my standards go, anyway. Some people round here are MACHINES). Sorry, couldn't resist the Star Wars reference (You didn't think Zander had played R&C but not seen SW, did you?). Anyway, things might get a bit more 'interesting' in the next chap, though possibly somewhat predictible. I blame IG for not leaving much room to breathe when it comes to what transpired on Jasindu that day. But after that, things will get _very_ mixed up (in a good way, I promise)._


	12. Jailbreak

**Jailbreak**

Zander, Ratchet and Clank didn't move under the glares of the fifty or so angry Kerchu in the bar. The atmosphere was like a sapling being bent too far. It would snap at even the slightest disturbance. Realising that he was still in disguise, Zander tried to salvage what he could of the situation.

"You lied to me, lombax!" he declared with utmost drama, kicking Ratchet in the shin. Clank brought his palm to his face immediately.

"Hey, weren't you mute?" asked the bartender accusingly. Another Kerchu stepped forward from behind Zander and slapped him on his holo-guise control. Zander immediately reverted to his true appearance.

"Hey, as much as it appears otherwise, I'm not _really_ a lombax", Zander pointed out, raiding his hands to indicate his overwhelming innocence. For a few seconds, nobody moved. Then, as one, every Kerchu surged forward, screaming harsh battle cries.

"Run for it!" Ratchet yelled to the others, knocking one Kerchu across the room with his wrench. Zander and Clank didn't need telling twice. Clank leapt onto Ratchet's back, who followed Zander at a sprint out of the bar. They stopped outside for a moment to decide on the direction to take. Zander's immediate thoughts were to head right towards Aphelion, but something else nagged at the back of his mind. He turned to Ratchet who, along with Clank, seemed to be looking at him expectantly.

"I…" Zander started, unsure of how to approach the subject. Ratchet appeared to understand.

"Come on, this way to the construction site!" he commanded, running left down the road. Zander followed, an adrenalin rush giving him the strength to keep up with his more experienced companion.

Ratchet's path was fairly straight, only taking a few turns. They did not have much trouble with the Kerchu on the way, since by the time those they passed recognised them as enemies, they were already gone. Speed was their ally. Zander was thankful for this, as he realised that he had no combat experience whatsoever. Shaking off a crazed fanboy was entirely different to evading someone who is by all rights trying to kill you.

"There it is! Grab onto me!" Ratchet shouted back at Zander as he rounded a corner and sprinted towards a ledge. Zander realised what Ratchet was going to do, so he did not hesitate in obeying. Just as Ratchet reached the ledge, Zander leapt forward and grabbed onto his ankles. Ratchet continued forward and let gravity take them down. Clank engaged his heli-pack mode to slow their descent, his small rotors struggling to get a grip on the air. With Zander's additional weight, the trio was still falling fast enough to cause worry, so Ratchet activated his hover boots, their jets of blue flame missing Zander's face by inches. The aerial formation slowed to a graceful floating descent.

Just as Zander was beginning to lose his grip on Ratchet, he felt a solid surface come up to meet his feet. He thankfully released his grip, finding himself on a large circular platform.

"You okay, buddy?" asked Ratchet as he dropped down beside the other lombax. Clank detached himself from Ratchet's back while Zander gathered his thoughts.

"Yeah", Zander panted. "I think so". He then managed to straighten his stance as his breathing evened out. He looked back up to the distant ledge that Ratchet had jumped from. It was crowned by hundreds of shouting Kerchu.

"The Kerchu will take some time to find a way down", commented Clank, "but they will eventually. We had best complete our search quickly".

"And what exactly _is_ it we're looking for?" demanded Zander with a sudden outburst of anger. Both Ratchet and Clank were shocked at his violent tone. This was a side of Zander that they had not seen before. "It's not like there's a sign saying 'Angela here' or anything!" he continued. For a moment Ratchet thought he saw a lone tear make its way down Zander's cheek before soaking into his black fur.

"Look, buddy, let's just have a look around, and see if there's anything out of the ordinary okay?" Zander slumped his shoulders and turned around, beginning his search distractedly. Though he did not let it on, Ratchet was silently panicking. Over the past days, he had grown to become accustomed to Zander's company. Though he knew hardly anything about Zander's past, Ratchet had come to count him as a friend. Clank, of course, was still a part of him in all but flesh, but still Ratchet enjoyed having another lombax around the place, even one that wasn't born as such. He had never been able to relate to General Azimuth, mainly due to the age gap, nor to Angela, the gap being one of gender. But Zander was, for lack of a better term, the same. And Ratchet would be damned before he let his new buddy give up. Clank walked up beside Ratchet.

"I know what you are thinking, Ratchet. It do not look good", he said sympathetically. Ratchet continued to observe Zander as he walked around the platform, staring at the ground. Suddenly, Zander collapsed to his knees and hung his head. He made neither sound nor movement. Ratchet quickly jogged up to him and kneeled, putting a hand on Zander's shoulder. In a barely audible whisper, Zander spoke his mind.

"I'm stuck like this forever, Ratchet. I'm never going to see my family or my home again, and I'm stuck in this BLASTED BODY!" he finished in a shout and began pouring his eyes out. All the stress that had built up inside, all of it that had been locked up, had a jailbreak. It came flooding out as liquid emotion. Ratchet didn't know what to say. He both sympathised with Zander and was hurt at the same time, considering Zander's sudden hostility to his current form.

Ratchet simply kept his hand on Zander's shoulder while the tears continued to stream while Clank watched over them.

* * *

><p><em>I didn't originally plan to have Zander just break down like that, but as I wrote this I found it kind of fitting. He must've been hiding all that stress somewhere, right? Thanks to that, though, this section was twice as long as I expected, so instead you guys will have to wait til late next chapter for the interesting stuff I promised. Do review people. I try to write regardless of whether I get reviewed or not, but it <em>is _a lot easier with encouragement/stuff to improve on._


	13. Hunted

**Hunted**

Bit by bit, Zander's tears ceased flowing and he was able to think clearly. He was surprised at his own sudden outburst, and was shamed that he had subjected Ratchet and Clank to it.

"Sorry about that, guys" Zander said as he pulled himself to his feet. "I shouldn't have snapped like that". Ratchet got up with him.

"Hey, buddy, forget it. We've just got to work out what to do next". Clank all of a sudden turned around and stiffened.

"I believe I have just found what to do next, Ratchet" he said nervously. Turning around, Ratchet looked at him and asked;

"What's that?"

"Not die" declared Clank, pointing along a bridge between the platform they were on and the outskirts of the city. Zander followed Clank's gesture to its source. At the other end of the bridge were a column of large machines, each piloted by a single Kerchu and bristling with weaponry. He suddenly wished he was anywhere else.

With a cry, several Kerchu that were marching alongside the machines surged forward and rolled themselves up in some kind of protective metal ball. The spiked marbles rolled forward at a frightening speed, threatening to tear apart the bridge by the grinding sounds that ensued.

"Get behind me!" Ratchet called to Zander as he tapped a button on his belt. Suddenly he flipped out a massive firearm, three missiles protruding from its muzzle. Zander dived behind Ratchet and plugged his ears, anticipating what was to come. Sighting his target, Ratchet pulled the trigger.

The first three Kerchu each received a rocket full on. They were thrown backwards into their compatriots with an ear-shattering boom. Chaos erupted on the bridge as some Kerchu fell off and the remainder attempted to move past the limp forms of their comrades. Ratchet then pressed another button on his belt and was holding a metallic tube. With a flick of the object, he was brandishing a gracefully waving tendril of blue energy. "Back! Back!" he commanded Zander and Clank with a hand signal

Zander backed up slowly, looking on the thickening crowd of Kerchu with fear. The treaded machines were now bulldozing their way through the mess. Soon they would be within range. Then all seemed quiet as an overwhelmingly loud cracking sound came from just behind Zander. He turned quickly, expecting to find more Kerchu, but instead he beheld a vertical, circular mass of blue light. Zander had to squint to avoid being blinded by the ferocity of its shine.

Just as suddenly as the light had appeared, Zander found he was being pulled towards it. It was as though gravity had decided to change direction. His feet began to slide forwards, losing their grip on the metal surface.

"Ratchet!" Zander called out desperately. Ratchet looked over his shoulder and widened his eyes at the sight of Zander collapsing to the ground, attempting to increase his grip on the world. Ratchet gave his plasma whip one giant swing, taking out several Kerchu in the process, then dropped it and dived towards Zander. Ratchet gripped the other lombax's arms while Clank grabbed onto Ratchet's own.

Zander felt the pulling effect of the light grow quickly, and began to slide towards it. Looking past Ratchet, he saw the Kerchu were making a retreat, apparently terrified of the light. The pulling built up and up, until Zander felt himself being lifted off the ground. Ratchet started to follow him, so Clank engaged his thruster pack to increase their collective resistance. It was no use. With a scraping of metal, Clank's feet also began to slide forward. As soon as Zander's feet touched the light, the trio, still holding on to one another, flew through. Then they knew nothing.

* * *

><p>Zander woke to find himself flat on his face on bare earth. He sensed a slight metallic taste in his mouth.<p>

_How did I get here?_ he thought to himself, standing up shakily. He was sore, but found he could move without much pain. Zander wiped some dust from his eyes, then looked around and immediately felt more helpless than ever before. As far as the eye could see, were vast swathes of piled-up and rusting machinery. Logic told him it was a disused landfill, but his gut told him it was a graveyard. The piles seemed to roll about like a stormy ocean, but all was still. The sky was a sickly yellow colour, dotted by brown clouds. It looked like a place from a nightmare. Only the sensation of a mild breeze tickling his fur assured Zander what he was looking at was very real. A pained groan came from behind him.

Zander turned around to find Ratchet struggling to his feet, the orange lighting of the landscape giving his fur a darker tinge. He seemed to be cradling his right arm. Instantly, Zander remembered the light that they had been pulled into on Jasindu. He then realised that it was a similar light that had dumped him on Veldin in the first place. His heart sank, knowing that he was again at square one.

Feeling his strength returning, Zander jogged over to Ratchet.

"You okay?" he said, placing a dusty hand on Ratchet's equally dirty shoulder.

"Broke my arm, I think", Ratchet managed to say, grimacing. "Won't be able to fight like this". Zander tried to lighten the mood.

"Hey, at least you're in better shape than when this happened to _me_. That was the same light that took me to Veldin". Ratchet huffed appreciatively.

"Oh yeah. Though I _could_ do with being unconscious right now. Where's Clank?"

"Over here", came the familiar voice from a pile of junk. Zander rushed over and dug him out, careful not to cut himself on the ancient machinery. Clank clambered from beneath a sheet of metal as Zander lifted it and adjusted his optical sensors.

"You alright, buddy"? asked Ratchet.

"I am… fine, Ratchet", Clank replied unsurely. "What is this place?"

"I don't know, some sort of spaceship graveyard?" Ratchet theorised, looking at the hulk of a ruined freighter half-buried in junk. "Come on. Let's see if we can find any life out here". Zander agreed and added;

"We'll probably be able to spot something from the top of one of these piles, if something exists at all". Ratchet nodded his assent, but Clank shook his head.

"It would be best if I climbed alone", he said with concern in his voice. "The stacks of waste seem to be unstable. You would both injure yourselves easily". The others had no argument for that, so they gestured for Clank to climb one of the higher piles of scrap. Clank eagerly ran over and started vaulting up the side of the pile. At times it took him a while to find his next platform, but he was soon nearing the top.

Just as Clank was about to make the final jump to the top of the pile, the metal sheet he was perched on moved slightly and a loud, low grating filled the air. Both Ratchet and Zander covered their sensitive ears while their fur stood on end. It was like thousands of fingernails being drawn over a single chalkboard. After an agonisingly long wait, the sound subsided and the lombaxes were able to uncover their ears. Their relief, however, was short-lived as they beheld a new, less painful but more worrying sound. An animalistic howling echoed over the sea of scrap. It was joined by more howls, all coming from differing directions. They seemed to be getting closer also.

"Clank, get back down here!" called Ratchet, fearing what was about to befall them. As Clank made his way down, somewhat more quickly than his previous ascent, Ratchet handed his wrench to Zander. "I can't swing it", he muttered. Understanding what Ratchet was on about, Zander hastily grabbed the wrench and gave it a few practice swings. It was surprisingly light for the solid block of metal that it was, though he wished he had something a bit less crude to defend himself with. Ratchet pulled out his constructo pistol and brandished it awkwardly in his left hand. It was clear that Ratchet was not ambidextrous.

The wild howling had grown to a point where it was the only noise audible by the time Clank managed to position himself by the other two. The three formed a circle, facing outwards. Lacking a weapon, Clank posed in readiness to utilise his martial arts skills. Then the howling stopped. Nobody dared breathe, listening intently for the slightest sign of movement. Zander looked down to make sure there was nothing for him to trip over easily. He did not want to succumb to something as unfortunate as a rock half-buried in the soil. Still, this momentary glance was a mistake.

Suddenly, they were upon them. Shaggy, wolf-like creatures that moved more like lizards over the scrap. Their snarls were horrific, leaving no-one to wonder what their intent was – Kill. Emerging from the piles of scrap, they leapt at the huddled trio from all sides. The first fell to a blast from Ratchet's pistol. The second, Clank managed to hold at bay with a flurry of punches and kicks. Zander barely managed to knock away a third with Ratchet's wrench.

Even after their first unsuccessful assault, the wolf-lizards seemed to intensify their ferocity. During a lull in attacks from his direction, Zander checked their numbers and was horrified. Even with five of them circling their prey, there were at least fifteen more perched on the piles of scrap, waiting for their chance to draw blood. Or waiting for their next meal.

One wolf-lizard leapt towards Zander's face. Luckily, he managed to hold up Ratchet's wrench cross-ways to stall the set of sharp fangs. But it still carried forward and knocked Zander backwards. He help the drooling maw at bay with the wrench wedged in its back teeth, but its weight held him down. Zander stared into the small red eyes that burrowed into him. There was no compassion or mercy there. There was only hunger. Zander's arms began to shake as the wolf-lizard clawed at him and its weight threatened to crush him. Zander, in that moment, knew that there was no hope of survival. Even if, by some miracle, he managed to shake off this creature, it would just as soon be replaced. Judging by the pained grunts and clanging that were coming from behind him, Zander knew that Ratchet and Clank fared no better.

Then, the wolf-lizard spasmed and the hunger in its eyes left. It stopped clawing and went limp. With a heave, Zander threw it to the side and stood up brandishing Ratchet's wrench once more. He stared in disbelief at what was in front of him. All the creatures were scampering away to the sides, while around ten figures pursued them, some with laser pistols and some with… wrenches. They were lombaxes.

Zander simply stared as the lombaxes, clad in well-worn light armour, formed an outward-facing perimeter around Ratchet, Clank and himself.

"That's the last of them. Make sure to stop any return trips!" came a commanding voice from Zander's left. He turned to look at its source. It was a pure white male lombax. Zander figured he must be their leader. What was out of place about this particular lombax, however, was that all of his equipment looked exceedingly well cared for. Unlike all the others, his armour was spotless. It had a many dents and scratches, betraying years of use, but had not a single stain or rust spot. His wrench had a handle that was so long it was more of a staff appeared to be polished chrome. Ratchet and Clank step up beside Zander, just as the white lombax turned to face him.

"Sorry we took so long to get here", he apologised in a smooth, confident voice. "It's not often we get visitors, after all". He examined the three for a while. His gaze fell on Zander for an uncomfortably long while. He then held out his gloved hand to Zander. "Jerec Farr, four-hundred and twenty-eighth lombax consul. Who might you three be?" Zander liked something about Jerec's attitude, so eagerly accepted his shake. Still, he felt a bit odd that he was put in a position to speak for Ratchet and Clank.

"Zander Renn" he said, smiling. "I think the others can introduce themselves". Ratchet and Clank stated their names as Jerec looked at each of them respectively. Jerec folded his arms around his staff-wrench, which reached up to his shoulder, which itself was level with Zander's. A grim look crossed his face.

"You three shouldn't have come here, you know. As dangerous as Tachyon is, you've just jumped out of the frying pan into the fire". Ratchet suddenly laughed, further destabilising the mood. Jerec raised an eyebrow, not familiar with Ratchet's in-joke. Ratchet calmed down.

"Tachyon's not a problem anymore. Right about now, he's probably floating around in space in some unknown dimension having a temper tantrum". Jerec grinned at the news.

"How?" Before Ratchet could start bragging, Zander interrupted.

"It's a long story, one I'm sure Ratchet will share when you have three hours to spare". Jerec nodded sharply. He turned and spoke to someone behind the trio.

"Captain, no matter our _involvements_ this is still the military" he said with a smirk, having his own in-joke now. "And in the military it is considered impolite to stare, so quit staring and get these three to the medstation. I'm taking the rest of the squad to see if we can chase the shaglizards away from the settlement _again_". He then shouted to the rest of the lombaxes to follow him and Zander watched as they all disappeared over the junk. All was quiet once again, until a feminine voice came from behind him.

"Well are you guys going to ignore me until I stick my pistol in your back or something?" it asked mischievously. They all turned around to confront their apparent escort. Ratchet's eyes widened, while Zander silently thanked the universe. It was Angela.

* * *

><p><em>She's Baaaaack! The 'consul' position that Jerec has was an idea I had in relation to the Lombax Praetorian Guard, drawing inspiration for the lombaxes' society from Ancient Rome.<em>_ Jerec's going to play a key part in all of this__. A few twists to come next chapter, so be warned. And yes, this will be Angela/OC._

_Keep those reviews coming!_


	14. All is Not as it Seems

**All is Not as it Seems**

"Angela?" Ratchet said, still wide-eyed. The slightly taller golden-furred lombax crossed her arms and smirked. She had brown stripes, similarly to Ratchet, and a head of golden hair that was tied back.

"Oh, gee, Ratchet, you think?" she jested. Then, out of nowhere, she slapped him. Zander snorted, highly amused.

"What was _that_ for?" Ratchet demanded as he rubbed feeling back into his left cheek. Angela placed her hands on her hips and raised her eyebrows angrily.

"What do you think it was for? Certainly _not_ for up and leaving me in Bogon without so much as a warning, so I can run halfway across the universe from a megalomaniac dwarf and thousands of armoured fish people who want to kill me just for existing!" Ratchet raised his finger as if preparing a comeback, but none came. He drooped his head, realising his guilt. Then, suddenly, Angela hugged him. "It's good to see you again, Ratchet" she said in a gentler tone, smiling at him warmly as she released her grip. At this, Ratchet appeared to cheer up a bit. "Same to you, Clank" she added, looking down the robot.

"It is good to see you alive, Miss Cross".

Angela then turned to Zander, looking him over as if judging him. "Zander is it? Welcome to the place where nightmares happen", she said cheerily. Zander was unsure to think of this particular line.

"Thanks, I guess" was all he could think of in reply. It did not help that he now found himself distracted by Angela's very presence. This was the first time he had seen a female lombax since his transformation, and he was, as much as he hated to admit it, drawn to certain _features_ that he had never thought to be attractive before. He shook himself and tried not to look, attempting to regain a totally logical train of thought. Ratchet noticed Zander's shift in mood, and attempted to change the topic.

"You know, Angela, it's kind of because of Zander that we're here" he began. Angela looked at him inquisitively. Ratchet beckoned for Zander to continue. Zander took a while to realise this was his cue. After a brief pause, he explained.

"I was, uh… looking for _you_, actually" he said sheepishly, all the time avoiding eye contact. When Angela remained silent, he continued, gaining confidence. "To make a long story short, I'm not actually a lombax". Angela snorted.

"Have you looked in a mirror lately?" Zander smiled slightly.

"What I _meant_ to say was I wasn't a lombax until…" he thought for a moment. "About five days ago". Clank interrupted.

"You are forgetting the six weeks of cryosleep, Zander". The black-furred lombax realised he was right. He had completely forgotten about the travel time from Solana to Polaris in the Phoenix.

"Almost seven weeks…" he whispered to himself. He felt like his previous life was disappearing much too quickly. He pushed the thought aside until later, then continued with his story. "I was previously a human, until I somehow appeared on Veldin and _somebody_ thought it appropriate to pump five crates of nanotech into my body". Angela appeared to think for a while.

"So, because of my past in genetics, you want _me_ to change you back", she concluded. Zander nodded. "I'm sorry, Zander, but I can't help you". He, not for the first time in his recent past, felt rapidly deflated. His hopes of returning to his previous life had been shattered once again. Angela, seeing how his shoulders had drooped, added; "Normally I'd be able to run a few tests, but around here I don't have any equipment to speak of. The best thing I've been able to salvage around here is a barely-working microscope. I'm sorry, Zander. I really am". She placed a hand on his shoulder to indicate her sincerity. After a while, she addressed everybody. "Come on. You guys heard Jerec. We need to head back to the settlement". With a gesture, she started leading them through the metal wasteland. Zander barely had the spirit to follow.

* * *

><p>"No way. You and Jerec?" Ratchet asked Angela, astonished at her recent revelation. He did not pause in following her up a jagged slope.<p>

"He proposed just yesterday", she replied matter-of-factly while she stopped to allow the others to catch up. Ratchet didn't know what to say. Angela never struck him as the romantic type. "When Max and I first got here, Jerec offered me a place in the Praetorian Guard, because of my past combat experience. He was the Chief Magistrate back then". Ratchet's thoughts wandered at the mention of the late Alister Azimuth's former position while Angela continued. "And after one training session a few weeks later, we were a couple. I can't quite remember how it started, really".

"What's he like?" Ratchet asked, secretly a bit jealous of the white-furred lombax. He had never seriously pursued Angela, but she was the only female of his own species he had ever known, and… well. He, like Zander just half an hour ago, could not hide his own feelings from himself.

"Jerec's possibly the most honorable, loyal lombax in existence. He takes his consulship very seriously. He might feel a bit… _strongly_… about certain subjects, but everyone has their flaws". Ratchet wondered what these 'subjects' might be, but he sensed it would be inappropriate to pursue the details with Jerec's fiancé.

Just as the party were about to top the rise, a siren carried through the atmosphere to their ears. Angela seemed to be highly alarmed. "Quick! We've got to get inside before they lock the settlement down!" she commanded as she ran the rest of the way up the slope and disappeared over the top. Ratchet made sure Zander and Clank were following close behind, then darted up after her.

What Ratchet saw on the other side of the rise was something he had not seen since his first visit to Igliak, and he never wished to see again. At the bottom of a long slope was a flat plain on which brooded giant metal structures. They appeared to be made from welded-together pieces of scrap, and lights dotted them. Some of the taller structured had two pointed spokes which reminded him of lombax ears. The structures themselves were not the source of the commotion, however. In the distance, a group of large shapes moved quickly towards the settlement while some smaller ones fled before them. Even from this distance, Ratchet could tell what the larger figures were. Ignoring the pain from his broken arm, he whipped out his constructo pistol and flicked its power to maximum.

Cragmites. The Great War had never really ended.

* * *

><p><em>I <em>TOLD _you that there would be a few twists. Bet you thought Angela/OC meant Angela/Zander, didn't you? Oh and the last bit, well... it's not _THAT _big, is it? I must admit I feel a bit mean to the lombaxes right now. Stuck in an industrial wasteland without much tech and with their ancestral enemy knocking down their door..._

_*Dodges tomatoes*_

_Hey! I saw that! Yeah, you in the front row! Please do use eggs. Tomatoes are far too yummy._


	15. I Hate Cragmites

Zander reached the bottom of the slope of junk. His lungs were burning and his joints felt like they were being cut by razors. Still, he kept running towards the settlement whose buildings now towered over him. He was driven by fear. The notion of a cragmite attack was not the source of his alarm. The look of pure terror he had seen moments earlier on Ratchet's face was. Zander knew that if Ratchet was scared by something, everyone else should be too.

Zander's group was approaching the base of the outermost structures, which were more squat and sturdy-looking than those towards the centre, probably as a defensive measure. They were joined by hundreds of other lombaxes, fleeing for their lives. A few lightly armoured individuals struggled to usher the chaotic press of bodies towards the centre of the settlement. Zander noted one such lombax with one Zander assumed to be his wife, both with tears streaming down their eyes as they embraced for what could be the last time. Then he saw a mother, carrying an infant and dragging along a scared and confused young boy behind her. This was totally unlike when he was pursued by Kerchu, or when he was being savaged by the shaglizards. This time, innocent lives were at stake. This time, he could do nothing about it.

Zander tried to put aside such soul-tearing thoughts and put on a burst of speed to catch up with Angela. Ratchet and Clank were just breaking off from the group to aid with the defense, despite Angela's protests about Ratchet's arm.

"The cragmites don't usually get this close to the settlement!" she shouted over the terrified screams of men, women and children alike as Zander started running beside her. "We need to get to Kaden's Refuge!" Zander was too terrified to ask about the name of their destination.

The hollow boom of an explosion came from behind Zander and he hoped it was not as near as it sounded. The screaming around him intensified. He and Angela had reached the inner part of the settlement and were following the panicked crowd towards the tallest of its buildings. Zander realised that this was more a city than a settlement, given the now thousands of lombaxes swarming around him. Perhaps they referred to it as a settlement to avoid associating it with the word 'home'.

_The race is far from extinct, at least_, Zander grimly acknowledged. The crowd slowed as it funneled into the bottleneck that was the large building's main entrance. Despite having the largest doors Zander had ever seen, it was still not built to admit the numbers that were assaulting the building now. The crowd pressed tighter and tighter, and the question of personal space was forgotten. Zander lost track of Angela amongst the sea of furry ears.

Zander was almost at the entrance when he lost his feet and fell over. Unable to stretch his arms out to save himself, his head hit the ground. Blackness enveloped his vision.

* * *

><p>Another purple explosion enveloped the side of a building and exposed several levels of flooring. Ratchet swore to himself as he let loose several blasts from his constructo pistol into a nearby cragpole that had been inches from biting off his tail.<p>

_Damn it! These things are everywhere!_ He and the Praetorian Guards that were not out with Jerec had been fighting tooth and claw for every inch of ground in the settlement. Still, every wave of cragpoles had pushed them farther and farther back. The short, legged and toothed heads that were apparently the cragmite young weren't tough. One hit from Ratchet's foot and they usually stayed down. But there were more cragpoles than the lombaxes had feet. He only hoped Clank was faring better with the patrol that he had decided to accompany.

Then there were the hunters. Larger, long-snouted cragmite troops armed with rapid-fire blaster cannons. And the way they would disassemble their own molecules and reassemble themselves a few meters away was aggravating to even the best shot. Ratchet was just glad they had not encountered any warriors yet. That would have just made it unfair. Though, Ratchet did prefer being able to see them rather than not knowing if they were about to blast you in the backside.

"Pull back! Pull ba-!" The lombax who gave the order never finished it. Ratchet gave the guilty cragmite hunter a face full of fire and it collapsed, twitching. He then respected his former brother-in-arms' last request and made a hasty retreat while a salvo of purple energy blasts followed him. _We need Jerec and the rest of the Guard, damn it! With them we might have a chance! _Ratchet reminded himself once more as he ran for the next defensive line ahead of him.

Ratchet reached a group of five lombaxes that had already arrived at the secondary defensive line. They had smashed together a barricade, made of furniture from a nearby dwelling, but still they looked woefully unprepared for the military machine that was thundering towards them. The lombaxes defending the settlement possessed a strange assortment of ranged weapons, clearly scavenged from the endless waste. Earlier Ratchet had even seen one wielding a crossbow, though her ammunition had a bit more 'punch' than mere wooden quarrels.

"Open fire!" the lead lombax of the group shouted when the first cragmites rounded the corner ahead of the barricade. No-one dared argue with that order, and let loose everything they had, including several grenades. For a while, the cragmite wave slowed and appeared to break ranks. Ratchet hoped they might be able to stop the attack there. Then his hopes were smashed.

"Warriors!" came the warning. Ratchet immediately switched his constructo pistol for something with a little more kick.

_Time to get a face full of plasma striker_, he silently taunted his new enemy. He then shouted his intentions to his comrades.

"I'll take down the warriors! Keep the rest off my back!" Ratchet knelt behind the barricade and propped the muzzle of his weapon on an upturned table to make up for his single functioning arm. He sighted down the scope at the three cragmite warriors that were storming towards him. He lined his sight with the lead's head and pulled the trigger. Ratchet struggled to compensate for the kickback with only one arm, but his shot was right on target. The warrior fell without so much as a death cry.

The other two warriors, on realising what happened to their fellow, immediately dispersed their molecules into two thick grey clouds, which rushed towards Ratchet. The lombax knew that they weren't quite close enough to reach him in a single jump, so he prepared to nail the second warrior. It was dead before it even finished materializing.

The third cragmite warrior, however, managed to make an additional jump within range of Ratchet's position. It appeared in front of him and swatted away his plasma striker. Ratchet stumbled back, attempting to recover. The towering cragmite never gave him that chance. With a victory cry, it swiped at Ratchet with a wickedly long claw, knocking him into a nearby wall. Ratchet's vision flickered for a moment after he hit the hard surface, giving his adversary time to attack again. The cragmite pinned him to the wall and prepared to impale him with its claw. Ratchet, desperate, hit a random button on his belt. His holo-guise kicked in, and for a moment it showed the cragmite a bright yellow Kerchu.

The cragmite hunter blinked in surprise at this, giving Ratchet all the time he needed to pick his new weapon and draw it. This time, he raised his hand to reveal that he was wearing a solid-looking metal gauntlet. Ratchet drove his walloper towards the warrior's chest. The weapon made a charging sound, and followed through with a rocketing punch. A crunching sound came from the cragmite as his insect-like exoskeleton crumpled under the force of the impact. It fell backward and with a last ragged breath, collapsed limply. Blue slime oozed from the wound Ratchet just caused, prompting him to look away in disgust.

"_That's_ why I don't like using this thing anymore" he said quietly to himself while shaking his head at his old weapon, which was now very slimy.

Cheers went up from the other lombaxes as some of Jerec's unit showed behind the cragmite force, routing the surrounded creatures. Only a few cragpoles did not scamper away, clearly not smart enough to know when they were beaten.

"Come on, let's drive those cragmites out of here!" one of the newcomers declared, signaling the rest to follow him to other areas that were under attack. Ratchet breathed deeply and then followed in a pained jog. _I hate cragmites_, he thought.

* * *

><p><em>Wow, I hope that chapter is as exciting to read as it was to write! When I first started writing this, I was a bit nervous about writing action sequences. I didn't think I'd be able to come up with sufficient fight choreography. Now it seems I'm starting to enjoy bashing the characters round a bit. Yeah, I'm evil, I know. What's going on at Zander's end of the line? Well, you'll have to wait til the next chap! Oh and Clank is hanging around, I promise. He'll get a bit more action soon.<em>


	16. Royalty and Sea Monsters

**Royalty and Sea Monsters**

_Zander was in an empty black void. It was like space, only without the stars. His eyes saw nothing. His ears heard nothing. He could not even feel any form of air current swirling about him. All was still. Strangely, however, Zander felt a presence watching him. He felt it more distinctly than any other sensation he had felt in his life._

"_Who's there?" he yelled into the blackness, but he could not even hear his own voice. The knowledge that someone was watching him only persisted. He tried whispering. Still no answer. Just the constant feeling of nonexistent eyes boring into him._

* * *

><p>Zander woke to find himself lying down in a crudely assembled cage with harsh voices echoing from behind him. One of them was clearly displeased.<p>

"Your failure is intolerable, general".

"Understood, your highness", a second voice replied in a remarkably calm tone.

"You have lost me many able soldiers today, and for little tangible gain. You know the consequences of an unsuccessful campaign".

"I do, my lord".

"And what is your decision?"

"The Cragmite Empire will benefit by my removal from the gene pool, my lord. My flesh will serve the Empire better dead than living". There was a pause. Zander had remained still, but he was still shocked by the apparent readiness with which this individual had sentenced himself to death. The first of the voices then broke the silence.

"You may proceed, then". This permissive statement was swiftly followed by the sound of a blaster discharging, then a muffled thud. Zander summoned the courage to roll over and survey the scene. What caught his attention first was the large holographic image of a brawny cragmite in a fine uniform. He assumed this was the emperor that the general, who was now lying dead at the emperor's feet with a blaster still grasped in his claws, was addressing.

_He took his own life as punishment for failure_, Zander thought to himself, astonished at the barbaric practice. However, this was only a taste of what was to come. The image of the emperor took a breath and said quietly;

"Make use of his flesh". Suddenly, a wave of cragpoles swarmed in from out of Zander's field of vision. Even before they reached the body of the general, he looked away in disgust, knowing their intent. The air was then filled with crunching and slurping noises for a full ten seconds. Zander had counted. He turned back to see no sign of the general, apart from a dozen cragpoles scuttling away, licking their teeth.

As the last of the full-stomached cragpoles disappeared, the cragmite emperor's hologram turned and looked right at Zander. He flinched, seeing even in the digital image of the cragmite leader's eyes no hint of compassion. He looked at Zander as if he were a _thing_. The emperor then spoke to him. "We _will_ drive your kind extinct for what they did to us, lombax. Make no mistake about that".

The voice of the cragmite speaking to him aroused something within Zander's gut. Something that was defiant, animalistic and terrified all at once. That something emerged as a noise that Zander never thought he would make. Completely by instinct, he bared his small fangs at the emperor and hissed. The message was clear.

_I don't like you._ _At all._ The cragmite emperor's only reaction was to raise one eyebrow, as if Zander was not even worthy of his notice.

"You are in no position to attempt to intimidate me, lombax. You are of no use to me anyway. Guards, cull it".

_It_. That was what the emperor had used to describe Zander. To the cragmite leader, he was nothing more than an animal. Zander glared at the image of the emperor as it flickered out of existence. His cage was abruptly opened, and a pair of powerful claws dragged him out. Zander attempted to resist, but his captor was too strong. Zander was forced onto his knees with his head bowed. He heard a light metallic grinding sound, and knew that a blade was being drawn. It came to rest upon the back of his neck. Zander increased his struggling again when he felt his own blood dripping down his neck, but the claws still held firm.

The weight of the sharp edge of the blade was withdrawn from Zander's neck, and he knew what that meant. _This is how I die_, he thought. In that mad moment, he considered it amusing. _What would the folks back home have thought if I told them I was going to be decapitated by a race of imperialistic cockroaches in a distant dimension, also with a tail?_

Time stretched thin as Zander listened to the blade swiftly slicing downward through the air.

* * *

><p>Clank folded his robo-wings away as he came to land on a small pile of scrap. This was where he last detected the cragmite convoy. After Jerec's Praetorian Guards had arrived at the settlement, the attackers had made a swift retreat. At the request of the leader of the lombax patrol that he was with, Clank had pursued the main body of cragmite forces to gather information on their activities. He was small, so reconnaissance was something he was well-suited for.<p>

Clank made a visual scan of the immediate area. He saw nothing but piles of scrap and the tops of the lombax structures in the distance. He then amplified his sound receptors to attempt to determine the cragmites' position. What he heard alarmed him greatly. The hissing of a lombax. From his experience with Ratchet, Clank knew that lombaxes never displayed such feral gestures unless they were in serious danger. Taking off with his robo-wings again, Clank headed towards the sound.

It was not long before Clank sighted the source of the hiss behind one of the larger scrap piles. As he got closer, he recognised the black lombax as Zander. Clank increased his speed when he noticed that Zander was being forced to kneel by a cragmite hunter, while another was raising a curved blade and preparing for an execution. Clank did not panic. As fast as light, his circuits calculated the most appropriate course of action to prevent his friend's demise. He increased the volume of his voice to maximum, then let loose a high-pitched hollering.

Just as the blade was about to intercept Zander's neck, Clank's cry reached the ears of both cragmites. The blade's descent stopped abruptly. It was thrown away, then the cragmites made a mad dash in opposite directions, attempting to get as far away from the sound as possible. It did not take them long to disappear altogether.

With the threat passed, Clank made the descent towards Zander, who was looking about in confusion at his captors' sudden departure.

"Are you all right, Zander?" he asked as he landed. Zander, put off-balance, took a while to respond.

"Um, yeah. I think I am. I _am_ alive, right?" Clank relaxed, knowing that he had performed his duties well.

"You are alive, yes. Come, the cragmites will return soon. I cannot fool them a second time".

"What did you do, anyway? I thought I was a goner" Zander asked curiously. He wondered what could possibly force the cragmites to run away so quickly. Clank, beginning to walk back towards the settlement, replied;

"I imitated the hunting call of a king sepiad, native to the cragmites' home planet. Cragmites instinctively fear it". Zander followed, clearly glad that Clank was not his enemy. Clank let Zander relax for a while. Soon, he would have to answer several important questions.

* * *

><p><em>Damn Clank's smart, isn't he?<em>

_On the self-execution thing, I think it fitting that the cragmites have a culture where the success of the Empire is put above _everything_, to the point where individuals will determine their own usefulness and act on it. They don't seem to me like they'd let ANYTHING go to waste either, hence the cannibalism (and hence the T rating =P)._

_Random fact also: the first 15 chapters were collectively exactly 20,000 words. What are the odds of that, eh?_

_I'm glad people liked my action sequence last chapter. I feel even more proud about it now. =)_

**_What made people think Zander was the main antagonist? Please tell me so I can fix it._**


	17. The Situation

**The Situation**

Ratchet stood in the shadows of one of the lombax settlement's outer buildings as another cragmite hunter's body was thrown in the massive funeral pyre that had been constructed on the plain. It joined the dozens of others in the chorus of crackling that carried itself through the air. Just an hour ago, Ratchet had been overjoyed. The lombaxes! After all these years, he had _found_ them. But now, Ratchet simply hated the universe for being so cruel.

Ever since he could remember, Ratchet had thought that wherever the rest of his race were they would be living in peace. The terrible reality of their situation, however, had hit Ratchet where it hurt. How had this happened anyway? Ratchet's thoughts were interrupted by Angela, who was running towards him. When she reached him, Angela leant on her knees and panted. She had clearly been running for some time.

"Ratchet" she huffed, "have you seen Zander? I can't find him anywhere". Ratchet suddenly had a sick feeling that something bad had happened.

"I thought he was with you?" he asked, hoping that his hunch was unfounded. He did _not_ need any more bad news today. Angela took a deep breath and straightened herself with a grimace. It was obvious she had run too far for her own good.

"He _was_. We were running into the Refuge together, but we got separated at the door. They locked the entire place down before I could find him". Before Ratchet could utter a long string of curses, his communicator beeped. Clank's calm voice came through, slightly distorted.

"Ratchet, I am calling to inform you that Zander and I are en-route to the settlement. Where should we meet?" Both Ratchet and Angela exhaled, relieved. Ratchet looked to Angela with an inquiring glance, and she obliged.

"Clank, meet us at Kaden's Refuge. The senate will want to see you guys ASAP". There was a brief pause, then she added; "Just where did you find Zander anyway?"

"I will explain upon arrival, Miss Cross. We shall see you within ten minutes. Clank out". With that, Ratchet's communicator stopped receiving and he became even more confused.

"Last I heard Clank was scouting the cragmite retreat. Don't know how he picked up Zander out there". Angela just shrugged, and started leading Ratchet towards their rendezvous point.

* * *

><p>"Aaaah!" cried Zander as he beheld the ground zipping past his face. Clank attempted to calm him<p>

"Please keep calm, Zander. These robo-wings are difficult to operate while you are thrashing around".

"Keep calm? Just _you_ try having to watch the ground that'll kill you soon. You get to just stare at the sky all the time!" Zander then let out another brief panicked scream as he narrowly missed being strung onto a cable that spanned the gap between two of the lombax's buildings. He proceeded to declare how much the universe hated him. "In one hour, I've been attacked by hungry predators, knocked out, captured by the emperor of the cragmites, almost executed and now _this_!"

Zander continued to rant about his current position, making sure to mention the minute buckle, his only lifeline, which had fastened Clank to his back. The constant shouting made it quite hard for Clank to concentrate when he came in to land outside the doors to Kaden's refuge. Zander only stopped his tirade when he felt firm earth beneath his feet. After that, he was silent, as though none of it had happened.

Before the massive central building were Angela, Ratchet and two Praetorian Guards waiting to escort the group inside. There was still a steady column of lombaxes shuffling out of the doors to return to their homes, or what was left of them after the attack. Zander and Clank approached them.

"Well, that was an interesting experience" said Zander calmly as he met the others. Clank chose to let the issue go by unchallenged. Nobody said anything as Angela led the entire group through the doors. The crowd split for them this time around.

The interior of Kaden's Refuge gave Zander goose bumps. After a brief hallway, the group entered a massive central room that, as far as he could tell, stretched up the entire height of the building. On the walls were more hallways, out of which streamed the crowd of relieved lombaxes. However, Angela led them towards a large column in the centre of the room, in the side of which was another door, over which was some large lettering and the stylised shape of a lombax's head.

Zander was impressed with the lombaxes' handiwork on the building. It was clearly made of nothing more than salvaged scrap, but the skill with which it was put together was excellent. Not a panel was out of place, nor a bolt or rivet loose. Despite none of the parts matching, they appeared to have come in a single flat-pack kit from how well they tessellated into a cohesive whole.

Angela arrived at the door and it opened automatically. Behind it the interior of the column was empty apart from three gears built into the point where the floor met the wall, and a respective track for each one ascending directly upward. It was an elevator, Zander worked out. Angela stood to the side and gestured for everyone else to enter. Just as Zander was about to join them inside, Angela put a hand on his shoulder.

"Zander, can I talk to you for a minute?" Zander nodded to her and followed her a distance away, to a part of the large room that contained nobody else.

"What is it?" Angela didn't look at him for a while, appearing to gather her thoughts. She then made eye contact and in a low whisper, said;

"Zander, I don't want you to tell anybody what you told me". The seriousness in her voice startled Zander, just as much as her cryptic choice of words.

"I don't underst-"

"Don't tell _anybody_ that you weren't born like this" she reiterated. Seeing Zander was still puzzled, she added; "It would just cause trouble".

"What kind of trouble?" he inquired nervously, also lowering his voice to match hers. Angela seemed to think her next words over again. After a delay, she answered.

"Jerec, he…" She seemed to change her mind at her approach to her answer. With a breath, she started again. "Jerec blames every other race for what happened to us, for how we got here. He thinks that they abandoned the lombaxes to Tachyon, and… When Max Apogee and I arrived, I was welcomed with open arms. Max, being a markazian, was welcomed with one open arm. You see, Jerec's come to _hate_ the other races for what he thinks they did to us. And when he's one of the two most powerful lombaxes around, consuls that is, he's able to get people to agree with him. Max spends most of his life indoors now".

"So you're saying your future husband's a racist?" Zander asked, beginning to understand.

"Believe me when I tell you, Zander, that he's one of the most brilliant men around. I wouldn't ever say no to him. But everyone has character flaws". Zander did believe her. In the brief time he had spoken with Jerec, he had come to like him. And he did not deny the fact that everyone had their flaws. Zander then chose to agree to Angela's request.

"All right, I'll pretend I've always been like this". Angela made a slight smile.

"Thanks. Trust me, it's just better to avoid bringing it up. And don't worry about Ratchet, I've already told him. He'll tell Clank as well". She then beckoned Zander to follow her back to the elevator. "Ready?" she asked Ratchet as she and Zander entered.

"Ready". Angela waved her gloved hand over a panel on the wall. The door closed and the floor started rising swiftly towards the upper reaches of Kaden's Refuge.

* * *

><p><strong>You know, I am extraordinarily satisfied with myself. I've finally managed to introduce all (but one) of the main plot threads in my story! Took a bit longer than expected, but what the heck. The next chapter won't quite be as dark as the last few. Keep those reviews coming, guys! Positive or no, a response prompts a timely re-response in return (Did that make sense?).<strong>

**What do you guys think of the lombaxes' government being similar to the Roman Republic? Am I going too far with it or no? Don't worry, they won't have and army called the 'space legionaries'. No super-powered Gauls, either. :p**

**Next chapter: Why the heck is it called _Kaden's_ Refuge, anyway?**


	18. Senatorial Intrigue

**Senatorial Intrigue**

The elevator came to a stomach turning halt and the doors opened. Since he had entered last, Zander had to step out of the doors first. He found himself in another large, circular room although Zander did not need to crane his neck to see the ceiling this time. The room was empty but for one grey-furred male lombax with white stripes directly in front of Zander. The lombax held a wrench similar in design to Jerec's, but this one looked ancient. It possessed no embellishments apart from the caked rust that coated its entire surface.

Zander stepped aside for someone who knew what to do, and Angela again stepped forward. The two Praetorian Guards silently positioned themselves on either side of the elevator doors. Angela looked at the grey-furred lombax, who was silent and appeared not to notice her.

"Lombaxes Zander Renn and Ratchet and android Clank wish an audience with the Lombax Senate" she recited. Zander was struck with the formality of the declaration. It must be part of some formal exchange, he guessed. The grey-furred male made no movement other than to raise the wrench then strike its butt on the floor, producing a metallic boom. He then repeated Angela's recitation in a surprisingly deep and loud voice.

Silence reigned again in the room. Then, with a mechanical grinding, the edges of the room's ceiling that intercepted the outer walls retracted, letting a few rays of light into the chamber. Once they had fully retracted, their respecting sections of flooring rose to meet the gap, forming a long staircase that started to the grey lombax's left and finished to his right. When this had finished, Angela stepped aside and beckoned towards the new stairs.

"Only those who have the audience are allowed in", she explained. "I'll see you when you're finished". Zander looked to Ratchet and Clank, the latter of whom took the lead. Ratchet followed Clank, and Zander tailed him.

The ascent, since the staircase was long and low, took a fair few minutes. When Zander's eye level was above the level of the previous room's ceiling, he attempted to gain a sense of what awaited them. The new room lacked a central column for the elevator, but instead had two banks of seating, each facing the other. The seats were all filled with lombaxes sitting in neatly-pressed formal attire, though much of it was reminiscent of military uniforms. At one end of the two banks was a stage, on which sat two more lombaxes, one red-furred female with black stripes and one white male. Zander recognised the white one as Jerec.

None of the room's occupants paid the newcomers any notice until they had completed their ascent and stood between the banks of seating at the opposite end to Jerec and the red-furred female, who was clearly consul with Jerec.

All was silent for several minutes as every lombax in the Senate set their gaze on Ratchet, Clank and Zander. Then the red-furred female consul stood and said to them in a formal, but attention-grabbing tone;

"Welcome, Ratchet, Clank and Zander to our settlement. I am consul Leliana. I believe you have already met consul Jerec" she said, beckoning to the bleached lombax beside her. "I do apologise that we were not able to give you a proper celebration, but our resources are stretched thin at the present time, as I am sure you can imagine". She was genuine in her words, but her face displayed no sign of warmth. Zander realised why she had managed to become consul. She commanded respect, both out of fear and awe. Jerec then spoke up and provided all the expressive warmth that was lacking in his counterpart.

"Why don't you come closer so that we don't have to shout across the room to you? We're lombax consuls, not cragmite emperors, after all!" Suddenly feeling awkward, the trio shuffled towards the consuls' stage, stopping within a few metres.

Zander took the opportunity to take a closer look at Leliana. She was older than Jerec, just how old he couldn't tell because of his lack of experience in lombax maturation. Her stance was quite mixed. She looked tired and worn, but at the same time she possessed a look that said she had the energy to go on and she would _use_ it. Most noticeable were her intense green eyes that seemed to know everything about him. She then spoke directly to Ratchet at a more appropriate volume given the distance between them.

"Ratchet, I think I can speak on behalf of the entire senate when I say you have our gratitude for your part in turning back the latest cragmite attack". She paused as the positive murmurings of the collective senate rose then died down. "The cragmites do not usually venture this far into our territory. They are either getting more aggressive or more stupid. If they sustain this kind of a campaign, it will wipe both races out". Ratchet waited for the next wave of affirmations to finish before answering.

"Thanks" was all he said, but Leliana did not continue. She only watched Ratchet, knowing that he had questions. Ratchet could not meet her gaze on even ground, so he obliged. "How is it cragmites are here anyway?" Jerec answered this time.

"I'm assuming, then, that you know about the dimensionator?" When Ratchet nodded, Jerec continued. "To put a long story short, the dimensionator wasn't as stable as we thought it was. Since we arrived here, our number people have been running through the, well… numbers, and it turns out that the dimensionator actually only sent _most_ of the cragmites to dimension X2-49. The rest were scattered throughout existence. Existence meaning including here, of course". Leliana interrupted with her continuation of Jerec's speech. Zander sensed some degree of rivalry between them.

"Ever since we arrived here, all twenty thousand of us, we have been fighting for control of the land we require to survive. The cragmites only recently turned this into a fight for continued existence. Previously they have been content with the occasional raid. We guess they have just realised how much they hate us for banishing them here". It was a lot to take in for Zander. Ratchet appeared to be struggling to absorb it all at once as well. Then Jerec decided to break the tension.

"So now we know why _we're_ here, let's hear how _you're _here. Start from the beginning". Zander left it to Ratchet to begin, partly because he felt that Ratchet should speak first, but also to give himself time to improvise a new story for himself. _Don't tell anyone_, Angela's words echoed through his mind. Ratchet started.

"Well, we were looking for Angela on Jasindu and-" Jerec held up a hand to stop him.

"From the _beginning_, Ratchet. We want to know how you got left behind and how you survived. We now _have_ hours to listen, Ratchet". Ratchet audibly gulped.

"_All_ of it?"

"All of it". Ratchet took a deep breath, worked out how to start, then began.

"Well, I grew up on Veldin, in the Solana Galaxy…" Ratchet proceeded through his entire life story. When he came to how he stopped Chairman Drek from destroying his home planet, there were gasps from several of the present individuals. Ratchet paused, and added quite amused; "Please hold all questions until the end of my life's story, thankyou". The senate didn't listen to him. The gasps and cries of astonishment only grew as he retold his involvement in the 'Protopet Incident', his _first_ defeat of Doctor Nefarious and his responsibility for the shutting down of Dreadzone. Once he got onto how Emperor Tachyon caught up with him and the ensuing events, however, there was simply stunned silence.

"You took down Tachyon?" cried out one of the senators.

"Yep", answered Ratchet.

"And half his army, including returned cragmites?" another demanded.

"Pretty much".

"BY YOURSELF?"

"Well, I had Clank…" Clank spoke up for the first time.

"Ratchet speaks the truth. Please allow him to finish". Nobody voiced their objections. Clank chuckled, apparently amused at their amazement. Ratchet chose to continue onto Clank's subsequent disappearance and his search for him. When it came to the Great Clock, he waited for a nod from Clank before detailing the sensitive topic. Then he mentioned Alister Azimuth.

"You know, after all these years, I knew he would still be alive" said Jerec thoughtfully. "He was never one to give up". Ratchet proceeded into his tale more cautiously from that point. When it came to Alister's betrayal and attempted abuse of the Clock, he made sure to stress Alister's ultimate atonement for his crimes. Around the senate chamber, many of the older lombaxes bowed their heads at news of their former general's demise.

"Despite his banishment, there will be many to grieve for him", Leliana declared in a very detached voice. Ratchet nodded in assent, then said quietly;

"I just wish I could have asked him more about my father". One nearby senator then asked.

"Ratchet, who was your father? Did Alister know him? He may still be with us". Ratchet looked up at the elderly politician and said with sadness;

"No, he's dead. Alister told me his name was Kaden". Silence followed, then all at once there came a flood of whisperings of senators. Zander could not understand any, but he got that they somehow concerned Ratchet. Only Leliana did not say something. Instead, she stared at Ratchet wide-eyed. When the whispers became unbearable, she shouted for the first time, in a way as to dare anyone to defy her.

"SILENCE!" she commanded. Almost immediately, the entire senate obeyed and stared at Leliana, apparently waiting for something. She stood up with utter calm, descended from the stage and stood directly in front of Ratchet. She looked down at his eyes, for she was a good head taller than him, and asked quietly; "Your father is Kaden?"

"Y-yeah" stuttered Ratchet nervously. Then, as one pair of green eyes met another, Zander understood. He felt a tear well up in his eye. Ratchet appeared to then have the same train of thought, because he suddenly joined Leliana in the deepest hug that Zander had ever seen anyone share. Ratchet uttered a single word. "Mother…"

With tears streaming through her red fur, Leliana breathed; "Son…"

* * *

><p><strong>Aaaw, I'm a sucker for tender moments like these. What do you think?<strong>


	19. Newfound Resolve

**Newfound Resolve**

Ratchet melted into his mother's loving embrace, not caring about the fifty other lombaxes watching.

_Mother_. It was a name that Ratchet had never thought he would be able to call anyone by, let alone in the living world. It seemed that with that one word, he had completed a part of what made him who he was. Ratchet had, of course, seen and heard what a mother or father was. He had listened intently to Talwyn's stories of her father as she attempted to describe the feeling of having a parent, but until now had not truly known what she meant.

Ratchet knew that he possessed few rivals when it came to his skill in combat. He knew that at any time he could call on Clank and an entire arsenal of weapons to defend himself with. He even had a RYNO V tucked away for emergencies. But all that paled in comparison to the complete and utter sense of security that he found in his mother's arms. He knew from that simple touch that she would do anything to keep him out of harm's way.

Ratchet, sensing that if he prolonged the contact any longer he might just grow to be afraid of the uncertainties of the outside world, pulled back reluctantly and looked up into his mother's eyes once more. Just moments ago, Leliana had been one of the most iron-clad individuals Ratchet had ever met, but now she possessed a gaze that looked softer than her fur.

"I thought you were dead", she forced out in the midst of fighting back tears. Ratchet simply continued to stare at the person who he had never thought he could meet. "I told your father I would meet you both in the Court, but he went looking for me before I could arrive and… Tachyon's troops, they… cut him off". She then thumbed Ratchet's cheek affectionately and smiled. "Your father… he never _would_ listen".

Ratchet, as overwhelmingly glad as he was that his mother had survived, also felt anger that fate had been so cruel as to separate his parents in such a fashion. Still not knowing what to say, Ratchet opted to lighten the mood a bit.

"So what do I call you now? Mother? Mum? 'Hey you'? I'm pretty new at the family thing". Leliana laughed.

"Just mum is fine. _Mother_'s a bit too up-tight for me" she informed him, still smiling. Ratchet was somewhat surprised that she could consider something a bit up-tight, especially given her previous demeanor.

"_Mum_" Ratchet repeated, satisfied. His mother's face then abruptly rose to face Zander and she said clearly so that all the assembled could hear;

"Now I hope _your _life story isn't as extensive as my son's, since we've got a bit of lost family time to catch up on". There were scattered joyous laughs, Ratchet's being one of them.

* * *

><p>Leliana was pleasantly surprised by how short Zander's story actually was. In fact, his story of growing up on an unknown, low-technology planet as an adopted lombax was almost <em>too<em> short. She was sure he had missed out some details. Still, she wasn't one to complain, especially when she had just made a decision which would require some time to announce.

Ratchet's reappearance had not only been the most joyous experience she had had since his birth. It had also been one that had kicked her ambitions into gear. Ever since the death of her husband and apparent death of her son, she had lost much of the spark in her life. It was only the will to not let other families be torn apart that had made her run for consul in the first elections in the new dimension, and given her the resolve to keep her race alive since.

But now, Leliana wanted to achieve something greater. It would tear her heart apart once more if her son succumbed to the depression many had fallen into while in the wasteland. She wanted him to be allowed to feel _safe_. So, as she had done countless times before, she stood on the consuls' podium. She motioned for Zander, Ratchet and Clank to stand to the side, and after they obeyed, she declared;

"I put forward a motion to dedicate as many resources as are necessary to return to Fastoon!" As soon as she had finished, she was met with both applause and disapproving moans.

"It's about time!" declared one voice.

"Are you crazy? We need _food_, not false hopes!" came another. Leliana, as befitting of her experience in governance, raised a hand to silence them. The shouts disappeared, though there were still scattered murmurings.

"Just how many generations are we planning on staying here? How many more cragmite raids are we planning on sustaining?" Leliana then gestured for Jerec to take his rightful turn to speak. He stood and was silent. For a moment, Leliana feared he would again use the current issue as a means of increasing his own influence at her expense. Jerec then spoke.

"You all know that I rarely agree with what Leliana has to contribute. This fact should make it clear how strongly I feel that her proposition is the right thing to do. We do not have another dimensionator, but Zander's story has shown us that it _is_ possible without such crude implements. We just need to find out how". The elderly lombax who asked Ratchet his father's name before stood and said;

"It is decided then. A task force will be established and it will receive as many materials and hands as it deems necessary". He then glanced around and added; "Unless any of you wish to cast a vote of no confidence". Leliana glared at the entire room. She could not afford a delay. No one spoke.

"Senate adjourned" Leliana concluded and stepped off the podium.

_We're going home, whatever it takes_, Leliana assured herself. _For my son's sake as well as everyone else's_.

* * *

><p><strong>Right, had a bit of a writer's block back there, but I'm back on the road now. Things are going to start moving again! Yay!<strong>


	20. Confrontations

After the meeting with the Lombax Senate, Leliana invited Ratchet, along with Clank and Zander, to share dinner with her in her apartment. Situated on a higher level of one of the larger, central buildings of the settlement, the apartment was quite spacious to be called such.

"It was made for whoever happened to be consul, plus their entire family", Leliana explained when Zander asked. "Until now I haven't _had_ a family to share it with, so hardly any of the rooms get used".

'Dinner' was a rather crude affair, consisting only of a few leafy shoots that had been farmed with great difficulty and a small lump of meat that looked suspiciously rodent-like. Just before Zander allowed a grimace to cross his face upon beholding his meal, it dawned upon him that the lombaxes were in very dire straits indeed if one of their _leaders_ was forced to eat like this. So Zander ate with little complaint. Still, he somewhat envied Clank for not having to eat at all, instead plugging himself into a charging port in the wall.

After the three lombaxes had finished eating in silence, Leliana seemed to gain infinite curiosity as to her son's activities over the past twenty years. Ratchet was only too eager to sate that curiosity, recounting his exploits in more detail than he had in front of the senate. Seeing little point in him joining the conversation, and not wanting to take any of Ratchet's time with his mother away, Zander was left to listen and wait.

It was not long before Zander became jealous of Ratchet's opportunity to spend time with family.

_Six weeks now_, he thought to himself. _That's how long it's been since I've seen _my_ mother._

Just like Ratchet, Zander had never known his father. He had died when he was very young, his mother had told him.

A prodding on Zander's calf abruptly brought him out of his trance of self-pity. Looking down, he found a pair of glowing green lamps staring up at him.

"Zander, I wish to speak with you", said Clank. The small robot then marched off to the doorway that led to the apartment's kitchen. His curiosity driving his actions, Zander hauled himself out of the dining chair and followed. Entering into the kitchen, he found Clank standing on the bench with his arms crossed. "Close the door behind you, Zander. There is something we must discuss". Zander became wary of Clank's intentions, but he did as he said.

"What's the matter?" Zander asked Clank.

"You have been keeping something from us, Zander". The black lombax felt his heart's pace quicken at Clank's even-tempered but firm accusation. Zander knew exactly which 'something' that Clank was referring to.

_Okay, okay_, he thought, attempting to calm himself down. _Clank can't possibly know, so there's nothing to be worried about right? All I do is pretend I don't know what he's talking about. I don't even need to come up with an excuse._

"Zander, you said that the blue light that brought us to this dimension was the same one that took you from your home". Zander attempted to satisfy Clank with a blank stare and slow dip of the head. Clank had not finished, however. "This means _you_ are from an entirely separate dimension, and therefore you could not have known about Ratchet and I if, as you say, you spent your entire life there".

_So much for not needing an excuse_, thought Zander, silently cursing Clank's excess of intellect and his habit of noticing things.

After a while, Zander silently cursed his own inability to come up with an excuse. _I'm going to have to tell him_, he concluded.

"All right, you've got me, but can you give me a bit of time to come up with the words?" Zander pleaded. Clank, appearing pleased, nodded. As he formulated his explanation, Zander realised that Clank was likely the best one to tell that he was from a video game. Clank was a logical and intelligent being. He was the least likely to fret, panic or fly into a senseless rage at Zander.

So, after taking a deep breath, Zander told Clank the _whole_ truth, from the _beginning_.

Throughout his tale, Clank remained silent and gave no indication of what he thought. He allowed Zander to finish and then said;

"That is impossible". Zander was expecting a reaction like that.

"I can't believe it myself, really. Sometimes I think I've just fallen into a coma and am having a slightly vivid dream". Zander could tell Clank still didn't believe him, so he asked what it would take for that to happen.

"Tell me something that only I would know". Zander raised his eyebrows at how easy that sounded. He thought for a moment, then offered;

"Your father is Orvus, the most powerful of the zoni?"

"Even Doctor Nefarious was able to establish that fact".

"You have a quantum actuator installed by Sigmund?"

"While I do admit that it is very odd that you know that, there are many who could have told you". This was turning out to be harder than Zander thought it would be.

_Something that Clank, and only Clank, would know…_ thought Zander, racking his memory for answers. Then it dawned on him. The one thing that Zander couldn't have possibly learnt except if his story was true. With confidence, he looked Clank in his optical receptors and told him.

"Azimuth killed Ratchet". Clank appeared briefly startled by this, but quickly regained his composure, so Zander continued. "Alister made Ratchet fall off the landing pad in the Great Clock, so you used the Orvus Chamber to reverse time by six minutes and save him". Clank stared wide-eyed at Zander, mouth slightly agape.

"Not even the Sigmund realised that happened…" Clank then added; "I believe you". Zander was confused.

"What, you aren't angry at me?" Clank gave him a lopsided look.

"Why would I be angry, Zander? Regardless of the implications of what you have told me, none of it is your fault. You are simply caught in the middle of it". Clank paused, then asked; "I am curious. What was this series of video games called?" Zander laughed.

"_Ratchet and Clank_, funnily enough". Clank joined Zander in a fit of chuckling.

* * *

><p><strong>Hope that'll satisfy those of you wanting the video game storyline to progress a bit. Unfortunately, my current plans will not allow it to be resolved completely until much, <em>much<em> later. Perhaps even in a sequel. Ah well. Until next time...**


	21. I forgot, Honest!

**I forgot, Honest!**

It took surprisingly little effort on Zander's part to convince Clank to not tell Ratchet about his recent revelation. Clank appeared to think that Ratchet would not take it as well as he had. He didn't even seem to think that it was at all _necessary_ for Ratchet to know.

"If Ratchet is told the truth, it will only cause him stress without any tangible benefit" Clank had told Zander, who was only too happy not to have to go through the nerve-racking process of sharing that part of his history again.

When the two re-entered the dining room, they found Ratchet and Leliana still sharing their respective life stories, oblivious to all other activity around them. Zander wondered what he would tell _his_ mother if he saw her again. He wondered what she would tell _him_. Probably that he should get a haircut, and not just from his head either. He smiled at the amusing thought.

* * *

><p>Ratchet found the conversation with his mother… interesting, to say the least. The whole discussion seemed to revolve around prying every detail of each other's lives out of each other as possible. Because of their curiosity, neither could be convinced to only talk about themselves, and so there ended up being a sort of unspoken turn structure to their talk. One would share a minor anecdote, then insist that the other share one also and so on. The result was, for Ratchet, a very confusing overview of his mother's life, made up a collection of random chronological points.<p>

Ratchet's mother just finished telling him how she fell for his father when he joined the Fastoon hoverball team, when Ratchet thought of a question that he did not believe had not occurred to him hours before.

"Mum, what's my _real_ name?" His mother simply gave him a confused look. Then she appeared to realise what he meant and gave him a sympathetic look.

"You mean the name your father and I gave you?" Ratchet sensed that a response he would not be expecting would come.

"Uh… yeah. It's just right before I defeated Tachyon, he kind of… _taunted_ me about how _he_ knew my name, but _I_ didn't. It's bugged me ever since". A pause followed, then his mother said apologetically;

"Well, we never really _gave_ you a name". Ratchet's only response was;

"Huh?"

"When you were born, your father and I each had our own ideas of what to call you. _Differing_ ideas. We were a perfect match, you know. We were both as stubborn as each other. Three days later we were _still_ each calling you something different and, well… I'm sure you can imagine what happened next". Ratchet experience a strange mix of understanding, confusion and anger all at the same time.

"So Tachyon was _lying_ to me?"

"Your father probably convinced that monster to side with him on the name debate as well, before he died". After a pause, she added; "Do you want me to tell you what we each wanted your name to be?" Ratchet thought hard for a while. For years, he had wanted this moment to happen, but now he knew the situation, it didn't really seem important anymore.

"Nah" he eventually said dismissively. "I've met one too many people that clung to the past". His mother smiled at him.

"'Ratchet and Clank' sounds better for some reason, anyway. More catchy". She then leaned forward to give Ratchet another hug. As she did so, however, Ratchet let out a shout and said;

"Hey! Careful with the arm!" His mother drew back quickly, a concerned look on her face. She looked down at how Ratchet was cradling his right arm, then demanded in a _very_ motherly tone;

"Ratchet! Why didn't you tell me about that before?"

"Kinda forgot about it, I guess" he replied sheepishly.

"You _forgot_ about it? About a broken arm? I don't know, you boys. You get carried away with your own adventures". She stood agitatedly and began to walk off. "Wait here, I think I've got a sling somewhere".

"Can't I just get a crate of nanotech or something?" Ratchet yelled after her.

"Nanotech? Now why would we have something like that out here? Honestly!" she shouted back.

* * *

><p>Zander watched the 'debate' between Ratchet and Leliana with some amusement. Ratchet had previously been so sure of himself, always taking the initiative. But now, with a mother in the equation, he was entirely helpless.<p>

As Leliana fastened an old sling around Ratchet's arm and shoulder, Zander thought about how easily _he_ could arrive in that position. If Ratchet, who has saved three galaxies and defeated countless villains, could get a broken arm, what were Zander's chances if _he_ were ever faced with danger again? What if Clank hadn't been there when he was about to be executed by the cragmites? What if the lombaxes hadn't arrived when he was being mauled by a shaglizard? What if he hadn't been sucked into the portal when he was surrounded by Kerchu? Zander realised he needed to learn how to take care of himself or he would be a goner sooner or later.

_I need to learn how to fight_, Zander decided.

* * *

><p><strong>Leliana: "Honestly, how <em>could<em> you just 'forget' about a broken arm! The arm of the series' main protagonist, for crying out loud!"**

**MrBlack: *waves keyboard* "I can kill you any time I want, so forget this ever happened please!"**

**Leliana: "What were we talking about again?"**

**MrBlack: "_That's_ better".**

**Seriously, guys. Sorry about just completely forgetting that 'minor' detail. On the bright side, it gave me a great opportunity to get Leliana acting as all mothers should (or do? Which is it?) Anyway, another bit of an uneventful chapter, but I hope it has set up the next major part of the story pretty well. So, just to remind myself (and anyone who's interested), the current agenda is:**

**-Give Zander 1337 skillz (within reason. No godmode)**

**-Send lombaxes home (I _might_ just have a well-thought-out plan for that. We'll see)**

**-Get Zander back home in 'hairless mode'**

**Further than that, and I would be spoiling things (or giving massive hints)! Also, _if_ I finish this and find myself wanting to write more, sequels _will_ be crossovers. Crossover-haters, you can still enjoy this though!**


	22. Polite Phrases

**Now, before I launch off into the next chapter, WHAT HAPPENED TO THE REVIEWS? I know my forgetfulness was unforgivable, and it was a bit of a dull chapter, but you could have at least told me those things! Good for you guys that I'm one of those 'nice' writers who doesn't demand an amount of reviews for a new chapter...**

**Anyway, the show must go on!**

**Polite Phrases**

"Zander! Zander! Wake up! You are going to be late!" Zander groggily opened his eyes as Clank shook his shoulders, or rather jiggled them, given Clank's size.

"Hmm? What?" he said half-awake while sitting up in his bed. Leliana had invited Ratchet, Clank and Zander to stay in her apartment for as long as they needed. Clank jumped off the bed and continued urging Zander to follow suit.

"We are needed urgently, Zander. Ratchet and Leliana have already left. Get dressed quickly. Leliana left some new clothes for you. She said your old ones smelt worse than shaglizards". Clank then left hurriedly, closing the door behind him. Zander briefly considered lying back down and shutting his eyes again, but he decided against it. He had a strange feeling that keeping Leliana waiting would be a bad idea. He swung his legs off the mattress and saw a pile of clothes near the door to his room. His old set were nowhere to be found. Somehow he knew he would never see them again.

_Another reminder of my past life gone_, he thought. Still, he remembered his old grey shirt was torn in places anyway, so Zander was thankful for the change, voluntary or no.

The new outfit, Zander found, was completely black. He pulled the shirt on at first. It was made of a stretchy fabric that he had never encountered before. It clung to his form without any creases. The pants went on next, with some difficulty. He had to turn them around when he realised the odd hole on the front was actually meant for his tail to go through. Once they were on the right way, getting his tail into said hole took quite a bit of time and discomfort. Despite how handy tails were for body language, they were inevitably a nuisance, he decided.

A pair of simple black leather boots went over Zander's feet. They had no laces, but like the shirt they seemed to cling to him. The leggings on his pants dragged on the floor, so he tucked them into the boots loosely.

The last item of clothing in the pile was a long black jacket, again made of the strange self-forming fabric. The hem, which flared out a bit, almost like a skirt, reached most of the way down his thighs and hung straight down, waving slightly as Zander moved. The zip, which he left undone, was lined with a stripe of dark orange, as was the collar.

Zander walked over to the dusty dresser in a corner of the room and inspected himself. The whole outfit was rather becoming, he decided. He only wondered where Leliana had managed to obtain such well-fitting clothing for him. It even matched his amber eyes, he noticed.

Just as Zander was about to leave the room, he spotted one final piece on the dresser. A pair of thin black gloves. Zander hesitated for a moment before putting them on, as he had never felt the urge to wear such items before. But then he thought; _What the heck_ and slid them over his furry hands. They buckled firmly onto each wrist underneath the jacket's sleeves. Giving his overall appearance one last nod in the mirror, Zander left the room to find a very impatient-looking Clank tapping his foot.

* * *

><p>At Clank's insistence, he and Zander once again travelled by robo-wings to make up for lost time, which Zander was not all too pleased about. He managed to keep his calm this time, however, and by the time they touched down in front of the settlement's scientific complex. It was a fairly regular-looking building, lacking much of the decorative embellishments of Kaden's Refuge, but it was not as rusted as some of the other towers of scrap.<p>

Immediately inside the front entrance was a large meeting hall containing around fifty seated lombaxes of varying age, all surrounding a central podium, upon which stood Leliana.

She was looking right at Zander.

"Zander, I would appreciate it if you were not as late next time. Take your seat", she said firmly, gesturing to an empty seat. Angela, sporting a welcoming smile, was sitting next to it and on the other side of her was Jerec with his arm around her shoulders. He too seemed in a friendly mood. Zander, still aware of Leliana's powerful gaze, simply said weakly;

"Yes, ma'am" and shuffled towards his seat. Once he was in place, Leliana took an audible breath and spoke clearly to everyone present.

"Anyway, formalities aside, you all know why we're here. Each of you is here because you are the leading lombax in your particular field, have the authority to garner the resources we need, or have some other special case related to you. With teamwork, and a bit of luck, you should be able to devise a way home. Any questions before we start?" Nobody spoke, not daring to face their already agitated leader-in-part. "Good". Leliana stepped off the podium and sat. Jerec then stood and took her place.

"The first thing we need to do is work out where to start. Any ideas?" After a brief pause, a hand rose into the air. Jerec pointed to a young golden-furred female in the front row. "Yes, Scientific Director Sondra?" In a quiet voice, but one that betrayed intelligence beyond her years, Sondra said;

"I suggest we start by examining the three known instances of travel between dimensions. From there, we can see if there is a way of re-producing the conditions of those instances". Jerec nodded approvingly and replied.

"Knowing what needs to happen, as always, Sondra. Now, how do we go about the investigation?" This time, an older voice penetrated the room's ears. It was harsh, as though it had something permanently caught in its throat, but it was powerful.

"Well, it's pretty bloody obvious isn't it? The spot the portal appeared two of the times was the same, so we set up every scanner we've got from the stores here to my grandmother's ass on that point. If anything beeps, we can pull out the champagne". Jerec smiled and said calmly;

"A fair point, wrenchsmith Krandon, but do try to learn some more polite phrases for this sort of environment".

"Polite phrases, my-" What Krandon said next was certainly something Zander rather hoped to forget, lest it become part of his own vocabulary. Leaning over, Angela whispered to Zander.

"Don't take offense at Krandon. He never insults anyone personally". Angela then raised her own hand to gain Jerec's attention.

"Yes, Angela?"

"We should run tests on Ratchet, Zander and Clank as well, and compare them to people that came using the dimensionator". Zander was unsure what he thought of these 'tests'.

"Are you sure that's really necessary?" he said nervously.

"It's worth a try", Jerec confirmed. "We need to know how you three got here". Zander gulped, envisioning various forms of sharp objects all pointing at him. Jerec spoke up again. "Any more ideas?" The hall was silent. "Very well. Those who think they can apply themselves best to the wormhole site investigation, report to Leliana tomorrow at oh-eight-hundred hours. Those who think the same for the look at the newcomers, report to me at the same time. We'll meet here again in three days to report our findings". Leliana then got up out of her chair and addressed the crowd again.

"One last note, everyone. This project in our number _one_ priority. If you need something and someone refuses to hand it over, tell them to name their price in bolts or otherwise. We _need_ this to work. Dismissed". In one wave, everyone stood and turned to leave.

* * *

><p><strong>Two new characters, 'stuff happening' and a costume change. That enough for ONE review? Please?<strong>


	23. Trust

**Wow, I should complain about not getting reviews more often! Ten reviews since my last submission! Thanks guys!**

* * *

><p><strong>Trust<strong>

Angela agitatedly shifted her grip on the handrail, squinting angrily at the dull red sunset. A soft breeze carried a long tendril of golden hair into her vision for a moment. She did not brush it away. Angela did not react when she heard a gentle clapping of boots on the metallic floor approach from behind her. Neither did she when a hand was placed comfortingly on her shoulder.

"Something wrong?" a smooth voice asked. Angela huffed.

"Nothing", she dismissed. The hand left her shoulder to tenderly nudge her chin to the right. She did not resist, and met a pair of affectionate grey eyes.

"I think I would know when my future wife is upset about something". Angela dropped her gaze and muttered something under her breath. "Come on, Angela. Tell me about it". She returned her focus to the sunset, which was swiftly departing.

"I'm… I'm worried about Zander". The white-furred lombax beside her said nothing, so she continued. "It's these tests, he … He might get hurt. And it'll be my fault for being stupid and suggesting it". Her fiancé hooted.

"_That's_ what's bothering you? Come on, you of all people know he'll be perfectly fine". Angela made no reaction to his display of amusement.

"Never mind". Two strong arms then enveloped her and drew her closer.

"There's more to this, isn't there?" Angela said nothing. "Come on, you know you can trust me. Is that Markazian giving you trouble? You know I'm happy to persuade him to move on".

Angela enjoyed the warmth of the embrace, but did not answer.

_No, Jerec. I _can't_ trust you._

* * *

><p>Zander stepped out onto the balcony and almost tripped over his own feet in seeing Jerec with his arms around Angela.<p>

_Perhaps now isn't the best time to talk to Jerec_, thought Zander. He started to take a step back so as not to disturb the moment, but was stopped when Jerec snapped his head around to him. The consul raised one eyebrow.

"Zander. What brings you here?" Zander shrugged off his earlier caution and answered the question directly.

"Leliana said I should see you about some combat training". Jerec grinned.

"Now why would she say something like that?"

"Because I asked here where I could get some. I seem to get into trouble all the time and sooner or later I'm going to die if I don't learn how to defend myself". Zander noticed that Angela had not bothered to enter the conversation. She was still leaning over the handrail with her head bowed. Jerec rubbed his chin thoughtfully and examined Zander with keen eyes.

"Leliana's a smart one. There's a reason she's still the more popular of us both. You presented an opportunity to her by asking her that, Zander. She snapped it up, as she always does". Zander didn't catch on to what Jerec was referring to. Jerec made it out as if Zander were being manipulated for politics.

"I don't understand" Jerec moved closer and gave a friendly smile.

"That's why I'm consul and you're not. Leliana's quite right; I'm the leading wrench duelist around. But usually she'd just refer you to one of the Guard's training groups. She sent you to me, because she wants to keep me busy while she asserts her authority over the new project". Zander, as surprised as he was by Jerec's theory, did not think it would be out of Leliana's character to pull such a move. He made a mental note to think carefully about everything she did and said from now on. Jerec continued, having more to add. "She also knew that I would agree".

_This_ was unexpected.

"Why would you? You've just pointed out how Leliana's trying to manipulate you". Jerec seemed to collect his words for a moment.

"Because I like you, Zander. Find me after the tests tomorrow, and we'll see about giving you a few skills. For now, I've got to deal with a moody fiancé". The last part was whispered. Zander took the hint with a nod and a stifled laugh. He said his farewells, then went back the way he had come.

* * *

><p><strong>Now, I know this is short, but I'm quite pleased with the bit of character developmentbackground I managed to stick in there. Leliana's a tricky one, eh? And poor Angela, it must be that time of the month. Stay tuned for probing, undeserved authority and wrench business.**

**Can I get ten reviews again? Please?**


	24. Probing, Politics and

***Drumroll*... I hereby give you... My longest chapter yet! Yes, that is right, ladies and gents, I've well and truly made up for the length of the last one.**

* * *

><p><strong>Probing, Politics and Grumpy Old Wrenchmiths<strong>

"Now, if you feel a slight tingling sensation, don't worry about it" assured Sondra as she placed another electrode on her subject's bare chest. Zander shivered in his restraints at the touch of the cold steel, thankful for his fur, which lessened the unsettling sensation of the dozens that had already been placed.

"Tingling sensation?" he inquired, suddenly wishing there was a button right by his hand to release the restraints.

"Don't worry; the omega pulse scanners are perfectly harmless for short exposure times". Zander somehow didn't stop worrying. Something about 'omega pulse' set alarm bells off.

"What are these restraints for then?"

"Oh, it's all part of the setup we use to interrogate cragmite captives. The cragmite physiology responds to omega pulses. Not that many allow us to capture them, mind you". Zander still wasn't impressed. He was strapped to an interrogation table.

"Just get it over with" he grumbled, admitting defeat. Zander watched Sondra leave his view and heard a switch being flicked. A low buzz filled the room, and sure enough Zander felt a tingling at every electrode attached to his body. The overall effect wasn't painful, but it wasn't pleasant either. Then, as soon as it had started, it was over. "That's it?" he queried Sondra as she released his restraints and allowed him to pluck all the electrodes off.

"Of course not! There's still the X-ray, ultrasound, tissue sampling…" Sondra droned on and on, listing at least fifty individual tests. Zander took some solace in the fact that Ratchet was going to be going through the same afterwards. Sondra re-approached Zander with a small syringe. "Give me your arm" she commanded calmly, making clear that she had done this hundreds of times before. Zander obliged and looked away while Sondra extracted some blood. When she was done, she looked towards the other side of the room. "Angela, can you perform a DNA analysis on this for me, please?" Occupied as he was, Zander hadn't even noticed Angela enter the room. "You'll find we delivered the necessary equipment to your lab. Be mindful of the electron microscope. We couldn't quite find enough screws to bang it together out here".

Angela approached and retrieved the vial of dark liquid. She gave a knowing look to Zander, then turned and left. Sondra stared after her for a while. "Funny, she's usually much more cheerful". She then shook her head and gestured for Zander to lay back down on the bench. "I'll just get the thermometer". Zander didn't even bother to ask why she was taking his temperature of all things.

* * *

><p>Zander left Sondra's lab many hours later feeling worn out, which was odd seeing as for most of the tests he had just been tasked with keeping still. Ratchet and Leliana were waiting for him.<p>

"Your turn", Zander drowsily informed Ratchet. "When she starts taking your temperature, make sure to request she puts the thermometer in the _front_ end. She doesn't ask which you prefer". Ratchet suddenly displayed a fondness for leaning flat against the wall opposite to the lab.

"Go on, Ratchet" assured Leliana, giving him an affectionate pat on the head. "You know we need to find out how you got here". Emboldened by his mother's words, Ratchet slowly walked past Zander into the lab. The door slid shut behind him.

Zander was just about to leave, when Leliana took a step towards him. He faced her, reminding himself that she had probably come up with another plan to bend the situation to her benefit.

"Zander, before you leave I have something rather important to discuss. Can I walk with you?" Zander, as alert as he was, could see no reasonable cause to refuse.

"Sure". He turned and started slowly walking the way he was about to earlier. "So what is it?" Leliana proceeded to move likewise. Zander noticed how she was very soon walking half a step in front of him. He grudgingly let the subtle display of dominance go unchallenged.

"As you know, we are prioritising this operation above all others here. I believe that is what it takes to get home, so I have no regrets in this sacrifice". Zander hummed his affirmation. Leliana then sighed and continued. "But, that does not mean that this will not cause problems. In a place where resources are scarce, people will do whatever it takes to get what they think they need for themselves". Zander wasn't quite sure where this was heading and how it involved him, but he allowed her to continue. "There is a very real danger that some will use their authority in regards to this project to further their other goals". Zander bobbed his head.

"I can see how you're concerned, but how does this involve me?" Leliana made a small smile and looked sideways at him.

"To put things bluntly, I need your help to make sure that doesn't happen. You are in a unique position, Zander. If you played your cards right, you could become one of the most influential lombaxes in the settlement". Zander stopped himself from laughing at the claim, knowing full well that Leliana would have her reasons for believing such a thing. More importantly, if what she said was true, she was probably going to do everything she could to bring him on-side.

"Why do you say that?" he ventured, unsure how else to proceed.

"Because you have few established loyalties". Zander was taken back by the statement. Was she accusing him of being disloyal? Would she arrest him for treason next? Leliana, however, remained perfectly calm. "Before you take offense, let me explain". Zander played along. "What I mean is that every other individual here has existing financial, organisational, family and political affiliations, as well as a reputation that everyone else will judge them by. Take Krandon, for example. He runs the best wrench manufacturing business around, and is thus indebted to his customers as well as the suppliers of his materials. Furthermore, he is a supporter of Jerec's place in the senate, and is thus expected to be biased in that regard".

"I still don't understand how this benefits my position" said Zander. "What you say only means that I don't have…" Zander suddenly understood. "An agenda", he completed.

"Precisely!" exclaimed Leliana. "And that will give your actions power. You have been inserted into this place with a fresh slate. Even your history with Ratchet is very short. What you say will be judged as unbiased, or, for lack of a better term, the truth".

"Then what do you need me for?"

"Alone, your words will be powerful. What I am proposing is that, in the interests of keeping everyone involved in this project in line, I give you the authority to discipline those who step out. How does 'Executive overseer' sound?" Zander felt dizzy. The mere prospect of telling _other_ people what to do for a change… It was frightening. But, at the same time, should he really waste this opportunity to do some good with his unique position?

"Can I think about it?" requested Zander as he stopped at the door he was heading for. Leliana stopped also.

"Be aware that the longer you spend here, the more biased you will be seen to be. Don't take too long with your decision". And with that said, she left.

* * *

><p>Angela intently examined the holoscreen in front of her, tracing with her eyes along the double helix that it showed. Once she found her objective, a pulsing red strand, she keyed in a few lines of code then gave an approving huff when the pulsing red turned to a green. She heard the door to her lab open and she hurriedly brought up another program onscreen. She swiveled around in her chair and felt relieved when she saw it was Zander.<p>

"Close the door behind you Zander" she said as she turned back to her work, once again bringing up the graphical representation of the DNA strand. She heard the door slide shut, then the soft padding of his boots over the steel floor.

"So this is my DNA, huh?" he said.

"No, it's a design for one of those spiral slides you see in playgrounds" she countered grumpily. Why would he even ask that? He was in Sondra's lab when she handed her the blood sample, wasn't he? There must have been some other purpose to his visit. She swiveled round yet again to look him directly in the eyes. "Come one, why are you here? Spit it out". Zander immediately broke the eye contact to stare over her shoulder.

"Well, uh… Last night when I talked with Jerec you seemed to be out of sorts, and with Sondra you were still like that. What I guess I'm trying to say is… Are you okay?" Angela snapped.

"Of _course _I'm not okay! Thanks to my own good bad idea I have to modify the records of your genetics to hide what you used to look like! Do you have _any_ idea what Jerec _and_ Leliana would do to me, not to mention you, if they found out? I'm interfering with the most important government operation since the defense of Fastoon!" Running out of words to say, she simply decided to glare at Zander to get the rest of her point across. Zander, now resuming eye contact, seemed to get it.

"I'm sorry, I didn't realise" was all he said. As little as that helped Angela, she decided to leave it at that. She went back to her task. Zander remained and watched, so she decided to humour him with commentary.

"The DNA itself has been modified by the nanites. If it weren't, all your new cells as you grew would be human and you'd end up somewhere between that and lombax. So be thankful that it happened properly".

"If my DNA's lombax, then why do you need to modify the records?" Angela tapped out another row of numbers and letters on the keyboard.

"The nanites missed a few genes here and there. They're not enough to turn you into a hybrid, but they'll show to anyone who knows what they're looking at. You know, I'm surprised they gave you the colour that they did. Black's already pretty rare, and to not have stripes? I don't think I've ever seen anyone else like that".

"I never really thought anything of it", was the reply.

"It actually used to be less common for lombaxes to have stripes than not. Fastoon has a pretty plain landscape, so plain fur was the better camouflage and we evolved like that".

"Really? What happened to change that? Were stripes suddenly considered more attractive in potential mates or something?" Angela sighed and slumped her shoulders.

"No. The Great War's what happened. Most planets have more mixed environments, and since the war was fought on pretty much every planet in the galaxy, within a generation plain fur became a rarity. Jerec was the only one left around here until you showed up. That's why he likes you so much, you know. 'As pure as a lombax can get' and all that". Angela paused in her work and thought about what she had just said about her future husband. Was it really that easy to point out Jerec's flaws? Still, she loved him. That was all that mattered, right? She shook that line of thinking out of her head. Those thoughts would only cause trouble.

"Oh" said Zander. Angela then heard him turn and leave, without a word from either of them.

* * *

><p>After a lot of asking around, Zander found Jerec waiting in front of a small workshop near Kaden's Refuge. A one-storey building, it looked to be cowering as the other, taller structures bullied it for attention rights. Jerec gestured Zander inside.<p>

The interior was somewhat similar to Al's Roboshack back on Kerwan, Zander thought. Only, instead of piles of machinery were row upon row of wrenches. They were every shape, size and colour imaginable. Zander even spotted a bright green one that was shaped like a cross, with four heads. He wondered who would be able to wield such a weapon. Jerec called out into the gloom at the back of the workshop.

"Krandon? Are you in? I've got a customer for you!"

"Why won't you people leave me alone? That's the third customer today!" came a harsh shout. "Just wait two seconds, ya impatient young'un!" A series of loud crashes could be heard, each closer than the one before it. "Blasted junk! When's one of those whizz-kids gonna invent something actually useful, like a thing that clears a path for ya?" Much cursing later, Krandon became visible and approached the two stripeless lombaxes. Krandon was a muddy brown colour, with black stripes. His back was hunched, but underneath it muscles rippled. Zander certainly wouldn't want to meet him in a wrestling match, even with his apparent age.

"Krandon, what can you recommend for Zander here?" Jerec politely said, gesturing to his new pupil.

"A bit scrawny, isn't he? You should go back to swinging sticks around, like all those other wishful kids!" Jerec said nothing, and Zander thought it best not to defend his dignity, lest he prolong the ranting. Krandon shook his head dismissively and muttered under his breath. "Eh. Never met a lombax I couldn't find a wrench for, and I'm not gonna bloody well start now! Any preferences?" Before Zander could answer, Krandon shuffled over to the nearest rack of wrenches and muttered to himself in thought. Zander wasn't sure how to proceed. "Well, spit it out! I haven't got all day!" Zander, having no experience at all in choosing a weapon, said;

"What would _you_ recommend, Krander?"

"Aah, I like this one Jerec! Why can't more be like him, eh?" Krandon then walked around to several racks, plucking one wrench off of each one. After this, he re-approached Zander and dumped a pile of them at his feet. "Here's all the basic shapes. Pick one, then we'll see what we can do about 'special extras'". Zander immediately picked up a shorter one that resembled Ratchet's, seeing as he had used that one before.

"No!" Declared Krandon, nearly making Zander drop the wrench.

"Pardon?"

"The way you handle that thing? Short wrenches aren't meant for you. That much I can tell you. Try this sucker here", said Krandon, holding out a double-headed wrench about five feet long. Zander grabbed it, then weighed it in his hands and gave it a practice swing. He hit himself on the head. "You clearly aren't meant to handle fighting in two directions at once. You'll find this one better". Krandon held out another wrench, very similar in build to Jerec's. Zander felt something about this one. It felt _natural_ to him. "See? What did I tell you?"

"I'll take this one, please" requested Zander, happy that he had found his weapon.

"What, are you kidding? You're not having the bloody demo model!" Krandon snatched the wrench away, then led Zander to a rack of weapons of the same build, all with a slightly different design. "Pick one off here. And not for looks, mind you".

"Not for looks? But they're all the same!"

"THE SAME? I hand-crafted each of these babies with my bare hands, I did. They're my own children, and you say they're identical? Here, I'll show you. This one here", Krandon pointed to the first in the row, "is made from high-density trillium. Perfect for deflecting just about anything, no matter how sharp. Downside is, it's a bit on the heavy side. Probably not your type, scrawny boy. While this one here doubles as a blaster. I don't make many of those. A wrench is a wrench and a blaster is a blaster, I say".

"Umm… Have you got anything easier to carry around? I don't really feel like having a walking stick with me wherever I go" pointed out Zander, afraid he might be going too far with the grumpy old wrenchsmith.

"Ah! _That_ I can do!" Krandon reached to the last wrench in the rack. It was rust-red, with a thinly built, elegantly curved head. It had rather odd lines repeating themselves every ten inches or so down the grip. Krandon held it before Zander, cradling it as if it were a newborn. "A fine piece of work, this one is. It's good for lazy people that can't be bothered lifting much or carrying anything large. People like you". Krandon then turned it so Zander could grasp it vertically. "Hold it near the head", Krandon instructed. Zander did as he was told. Then Krandon reached forward, grasped one side of the head and twisted it slightly. With a snapping noise, the entire grip collapsed telescopically and the head collapsed in on itself.

Zander examined the now folded wrench. The whole package was just under a foot long and weighed about half a kilo. Zander now appreciated what Krandon meant by carrying something small.

"I can take this one?" ventured Zander, aware that Krandon might snatch it back at any moment.

"Get it out of my sight! It reminds me every day how lazy everyone's become these days! That'll be one thousand bolts". Before Zander could say that he didn't have any money, Jerec had handed Krandon the necessary amount.

Zander left Krandon's workshop following Jerec, satisfied with the new object attached at the small of his back.

* * *

><p><strong>I do hope Ratchet remembered what Zander told him to do.<strong>

**Yes, this is the start to Zander's highly illustrious career in... something. No spoilers for you guys!**

**Oh, and is Angela starting to have DOUBTS over Jerec?**

**I've had the idea for the design for Zander's wrench for longer than Zander himself has existed (in imagination terms). What do you guys think? It has to be small, to make room for various other 'utility' items in future. I will say no more, but suffice to say he's gonna end up very badass in the costume department.**

**As I've said before, every little plot device has a purpose. It might seem spontaneous, but it's not. Feel free to speculate on where I'm headed with this. Who knows? I might be making things a bit _too_ obvious!**

**As always, keep those great reviews incoming!**


	25. The Spotlight

**The Spotlight**

Zander's lessons in wrench combat proceeded quickly. After his ordeal in Sondra's lab, he had little left to do besides train. He soon gained an appreciation of how elegant a weapon a wrench could be. Zander very soon realised that his skills were surpassing Ratchet, who had never received any formal instruction in melee combat.

However, the more Zander trained, the more he realised that he would never be able to match Jerec in a fair fight. In their many sparring sessions, Jerec had not once felt a blow from Zander's wrench. Zander doubted he had even made Jerec _try_ to win a match yet. He was certainly worthy of the title of the best duelist around.

Yet, for all his technical superiority, Jerec treated Zander with a very curious sense of respect. Almost as an equal. He never boasted, nor did he chide Zander for his fumbling. Oddly enough, Zander couldn't help but admire Jerec in return. He was like a big brother to him. And so Zander did not feel awkward in responding to Leliana's proposal of an authoritative position.

"Would Scientific Director Sondra please come forward", declared Leliana from the stage. As planned, the lombaxes had once again gathered to discuss their progress in the project that had been dubbed 'Operation Homecoming'.

Once Sondra's small form had ascended the steps to the stage, Leliana stepped aside so that she might have the floor. In her usual quiet voice, Sondra spoke.

"The information I am about to share shows much promise for our efforts in returning home". An excited wave of murmuring passed through the room. "That is why I ask you all now to remain calm throughout my presentation. We could very well end at disappointment". The murmuring stopped. Sondra pulled out a remote and pressed a button on it. A large holographic representation of Zander's head and torso flickered into existence, floating in the middle of the room. "As you all know, we have studied Ratchet, Clank and Zander for any possible causes of inter-dimensional travel. The tests on Ratchet and Clank showed no notable results, however as I am sure you have already guessed, Zander's body had an intriguing story to tell".

Zander felt curious eyes boring into him. He didn't blame them. What could possibly be interesting about his body? Angela erased all traces of his human self, didn't she?

Sondra pressed another button on her remote, and a small dot blinked red in the hologram's shoulder. "Our scans have revealed that, embedded within Zander's shoulder is a miniscule shard of crystal. We examined its structure, and the only known comparison we have been able to find is the original surinox shard". The murmuring rose again, but Sondra confidently continued. "It is commonplace for beings to have some traces of foreign substances enter their body, but this is the very type of trans-dimensional crystal that was used to build the dimensionators".

"So build one already!" came Krandon's familiar voice from the back. Sondra ignored him.

"The shard is not large enough to create another dimensionator. However, our scans of the locations of known inter-dimensional travel, as well as Zander's account of events, have presented a theory. We believe that this shard can re-open nearby wormholes".

There was silence. Then, one lombax started clapping. Then another. Then the entire room erupted into cheering. Despite Sondra's earlier words of caution, Zander even noticed her grinning as she left the stage.

Leliana stepped forward, prompting an abrupt silence.

"There are preparations to be made, and tests to be run, so it will be a while yet before we are able to put what Sondra has shown into action. First, however, I would like to call Zander forward".

Zander had an inkling of why, so he made no hesitation in leaving his seat and assuming a place beside Leliana, who placed a hand on his shoulder and spoke to the crowd again.

"Firstly, I would like to thank Zander for the opportunity he has just presented us with. Though he had no place in making this happen, his presence is something we are all grateful for, I am sure". Leliana paused, then reached into her pocket and pulled out a small, simple red badge with lettering in lombax on it. "Secondly, I would like to thank Zander for accepting my request that he step in and ensure the Homecoming Project proceeds as smoothly as possible. I am, with Jerec's agreement, making him executive overseer of the entire operation. I expect you all to respect his authority, because if you do not, you are also disrespecting ours". Leliana turned to Zander and pinned the badge onto his jacket, which Zander had sensibly zipped up so as to look the part. She firmly shook his hand, prompting more cheering from the crowd. Just before Zander was able to leave, Leliana also whispered into his ear; "Don't let it go to your head".

* * *

><p><strong>Sorry about the long wait. Had another bout of writers' block. This was a difficult chapter to write, and I think it unfortunately shows. I've worked myself into a corner, where there's a bunch of stuff left to happen in a relatively short time frame. Within the next few chapters, the conflict should ramp up again and I can stretch things out more, I think.<strong>


	26. Operation Homecoming

**Operation Homecoming**

Talwyn Apogee shivered as she looked at the vaulted ceiling of the Court of Azimuth. The last time she was here, she had very nearly lost a dear friend.

"You're sure this was the position of the energy signature guys?"

Cronk, a rusty old warbot, clattered up beside her.

"Absolutely, Miss Talwyn. My sensors are as sharp as razor claws".

"Yeah, sharp as razor claws with flat batteries!" added Zephyr, slapping Cronk on the back with a loud clang.

"I detest that!"

"Ugh, will you guys just focus please?" pleaded Talwyn. She went back to thinking how it was Fastoon, of all places in Polaris, that Cronk had detected repeated energy pulses over the past month. The home planet of the lombaxes, the location of their retreat from this dimension, and the site of Emperor Tachyon's defeat. It seemed the desert planet was the centre of the universe. Talwyn knew this was not the case, though, seeing as the Great Clock was not within fifty feet of here. Talwyn sighed. "There's nothing here, guys. Come on, let's make sure the Station hasn't been hit by pirates while we've been away".

Cronk and Zephyr followed Talwyn towards the only door in the wall of the massive circular room. Then Cronk stopped.

"Uh, Miss Talwyn, the energy signature has-"

Cronk was cut off by the sound of an explosion coming from the centre of the Court. At the same time, a blue light appeared.

Talwyn stared in amazement at the sight. The portal was identical to the one Tachyon had conjured with the dimensionator years ago. She could even see those same buildings faintly outlined within.

"Run! It's the apocalypse!" cried Zephyr.

"The _zombie_ apocalypse!" corrected Cronk in a similar manner.

"Would you two just calm down?" The two warbots stopped their panicking, though they still kept their distance from the portal.

Talwyn approached the portal cautiously, but froze when she heard voices coming from it.

"_Well, do we have any volunteers? Nobody? Come on, it's not like it'll save our race from extinction or anything!"_

"_I will"_

"_Urgh. Very well"._

The voice that said 'I will' seemed familiar to Talwyn. But the voices were muffled, and so she could not quite place it.

Then a large, stocky figure stepped out of the portal. Because of the brightness of the light, they were silhouetted. Talwyn decided to find out who they were. If they were a threat, she, Cronk and Zephyr would become Polaris' first line of defense.

"Who are you?" she demanded, raising her blaster to where she could make out the newcomer's head. Cronk and Zephyr did likewise, though from a larger distance.

"Cronk? Zephyr?" the now very familiar voice said. "And… Talwyn?"

Before Talwyn could react, she found herself being crushed in a bear hug. "You've grown so much" whispered her assailant.

"…Dad?"

Max Apogee let go of his daughter and grinned widely.

"My baby girl" he commented affectionately.

Talwyn was lost for words, so her only action was to give her father a bear hug in return.

"Mister Apogee!" exclaimed Zephyr. "You've returned! I knew you would, I knew it all along".

Talwyn let go of her father and smirked at the bizarre situation. Even with her long-lost father returning, Zephyr couldn't resist a chance to brag. She was about to say something when her father held up a finger to silence her.

"Hold on, Tal, I've gotta do something or I'll be in a fair bit of trouble with Jerec". He turned around and stuck his head through the portal.

"In case you folks haven't realised, the portal works like a beaut", Talwyn heard. Max pulled his head back out again, to be followed by a golden-furred, brown-striped lombax.

"Oh. Hey, Talwyn" Ratchet said casually. "Your turn for a family reunion now?"

* * *

><p>For the next four hours, Talwyn could not find a single opportunity to say anything at all as thousands of lombaxes filed out of the wormhole. They were coming home after all these years.<p>

The last lombaxes to step out of the portal before it closed were two young males, one pure white and one pure black. They had their arms over each others' shoulders and massive grins stretched across their faces.

"It worked! I told you it would work! Did I tell you it would work?" boasted the white one.

"Only about ten thousand times".

"And you still said it wouldn't work".

"That was my way of saying that I don't appreciate being tied down".

"What else were we going to do? Just let you get flung into the portal, leaving the rest of us behind?"

Talwyn sighed. She always missed out on seeing the truly exciting stuff happening.

* * *

><p>"Jerec, could you find a safe spot to put this, please?" said Angela, handing a datapad to him. He accepted it.<p>

"What is it?"

"It's all my research. You didn't think I'd just leave it behind, did you?" Jerec was about to answer when he was forced to dodge a child who bolted past, playing some sort of game in the courtyard.

"Of course not. I know just the place". Jerec kissed Angela on the cheek, then marched off while Angela went about her arranged chores in making the arrival of twenty thousand lombaxes as smooth as possible.

After a few minutes on foot, Jerec arrived at the entrance to a large, ruined dwelling. The basic structure was still intact, but scorch marks could still be seen on the sandstone walls. Jerec entered respectfully, not wanting to disturb the silence of his childhood home. Everything was as he remembered it. A chair or table here and there had been toppled, but otherwise his three-year-old self could have lived here just yesterday.

Jerec headed to the kitchen, where he knew his family's safe was kept. Then his foot caught on something and he went sprawling, the datapad flying from his grasp.

Jerec was unhurt, and he looked at what had caused him to trip. It was a dusty lombax soft toy.

_Rexy?_ thought Jerec. He had no idea how he had managed to remember his pet name for his old companion. He picked up the toy gingerly, aware that the seams were old and could tear apart at any time. With a throbbing pain in his chest, he remembered the last day he had seen Rexy.

"_Mummy, what's happening?"_

"_We have to go, son. There are bad people"._

_Bad people_, his mother had said. More like monsters.

Jerec shook his head and placed Rexy on the kitchen table. He then looked for the datapad. It was lying on the ground just a short distance away. He picked it up, and noticed it had been activated, probably bumped when he dropped it. The screen showed a list of project headings. Jerec was just about to switch the datapad back off again when he noticed the label of the last folder accessed.

It said 'Zander'.

Jerec frowned. Why would Angela's files on Zander be different to the ones further down, labeled 'Operation Homecoming'?

Seeing no harm in it, Jerec opened the 'Zander' files.

As he read, a vein on his temple started to throb.

* * *

><p><strong>The reason for my 'flash forward' in this chapter was that I found not much was truly happening, besides that which you can probably guess is happening in the background anyway. I wasn't about to write three chapters on how the lombaxes built Zander's restraints to keep the portal open, after all. Even here, I glossed over some of the more mundane details of the lombaxes returning.<strong>

**And yay! The Apogee gang are here! As a family!**

**What will Jerec do next? I think it's pretty safe to say he'll get a bit mad, at lots of people. You'll just have to wait for the next update to find out where this story will take him. Just bear in mind that he and Leliana share equal power as consuls... and that he is a DUEList. If that's not a hint, I don't know what is.**

**Another set of apologies about the scarce updates recently. I've been under a lot of stress with starting uni soon and haven't been in the writing mood much.**


	27. Contessa

**Contessa**

Zander squinted his eyes as he scanned the cloudless Fastoon sky. "Clank, what was Ratchet doing again?" he asked the small robot sitting behind him on a rock. The rock was the only object in the miles of dry plains outside the lombax capital.

"Ratchet was very adamant that it would be a surprise, Zander. I do not know what he left to retrieve".

Zander huffed with impatience. What could make a lombax such as Ratchet suddenly decide to leave Fastoon with the promise of returning an hour later? "Clank, can I ask you something?"

"Certainly".

"Do you ever consider me as a human?"

"I am not sure I understand. To consider you as human in your present state would be illogical".

"It's just… I can't remember not being like this anymore. I think back, and I can see the places I've been, the people I've met and the things I've done back on Earth. But I can't remember having hair, round ears… having no tail".

Clank bowed his head in thought for a moment, then looked back up. "Perhaps that is because your subconscious deems your physical form to be unimportant".

"Perhaps".

Just then, the roar of engines filled the air, and Zander snapped his gaze upward to see two specs in the sky, quickly growing larger. The soon formed themselves into the shapes of small starfighters. One of the fighters was red, and Zander realised that it was Aphelion. The other was predominantly white, with dark grey and red accents. Otherwise, its design was very similar to Aphelion's.

The two ships touched down, both their engines whining, and Ratchet got out of Aphelion's cockpit.

"I know, I know, hold the applause buddy", said Ratchet to Zander. The black lombax just looked back at him blankly.

"Huh?"

"What, don't Earthlings give presents?"

Zander looked from Ratchet to the white ship that was apparently devoid of a pilot. "You… you want to give me a _ship_?"

"The name's Contessa, not 'ship'", interrupted the ship. Its voice was very similar to Aphelion, but had a more casual tone to it. "Honestly, if you're going to be my new pilot, you'd better get some manners".

Zander blinked in surprise. "I'm sorry?"

"Better", said Contessa. "So long as you're a more interesting conversationalist than Sigmund".

"She used to be Alister's ship, until it happened", said Ratchet to Zander. "She needs a pilot, you need a ship. She was stuck at the Clock, you were stuck on Fastoon. Seemed simple".

* * *

><p>"You're the most lazy lombax to ever inhabit this galaxy, you know that?"<p>

"I'm not sure you get how exhausting it is to wait out in the sun for three hours, Contessa", said Zander while he turned the wheel, guiding his new ship into the city's old spaceport. "Black fur doesn't help with heat loss either".

"What, you're telling me you can't walk for _ten minutes_ to get back? Alister would have run around the city three times just for the fun of it".

"I'm not Alister".

"Obviously"

Contessa landed and opened her canopy. "I do hope you don't need me to carry you across the street".

Zander let the remark go and jumped out, rolling his eyes. He could already tell that Contessa was one of _those_ artificial intelligences. His thoughts were interrupted by a harsh shout.

"Halt!"

Before Zander could react, he was surrounded by a small group of uniformed lombaxes. They all pointed their weapons at him.

"Uh, is there a problem?"

A brown male with white stripes stepped forward.

"Zander Renn, you are under arrest. You will come with us for judgment before the Lombax Senate".

Zander took a while to process this sudden turn of events, and to formulate a response. "On what charges?"

"On charges of fraud and treason"

"And by whose authority? You _do_ realise that I outrank you, right?"

"I received my orders from consul Jerec himself".

Zander took even more time to process this new information. Why would Jerec, his friend and tutor, order his arrest? None of it made sense. He then decided to play along, and find what all this was about.

"Very well. Lead the way".

"_After you_", countered his captor. Zander didn't argue, and confidently started walking.

/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\

"What's this all about, Jerec?" demanded Leliana as she stepped up to the consuls' podium, hurriedly buttoning up her uniform. "I thought we agreed there were to be no more emergency meetings unless there was an actual emergency".

Jerec did not take his gaze off the entrance to the Court of Azimuth. "All will be clear shortly, Leliana". He was clutching a datapad close to himself, like it contained the cure to mortality. All about the room, senators were finding their seating. The senators on Leliana's side of the room seemed to be as agitated as she was, while Jerec's supporters displayed his sense of confident determination.

Leliana noticed the contrasting attitudes. "I hope you're not planning anything I would not approve of".

Jerec remained silent, and Leliana took her seat. Then a deep boom filled the Court, and Zander entered, escorted by two guards.

"Will somebody please tell me what this is all about?" said Zander.

"Zander Renn", began Jerec. "You have been brought before the senate to establish your guilt of fraud and treason, and for suitable punishment to be decided upon".

"Fraud and treason? What are you talking about?"

"You know very well what I'm talking about, _alien_". The venom in Jerec's voice was evident.

"Jerec, why don't you tell us what all this is about?" suggested Leliana.

"Gladly". Jerec turned around and plugged the datapad that he had been clutching into a panel in the wall. A large holographic diagram flickered to life in the centre of the room.

"_This_", said Jerec, "is this one's true identity. He is no lombax. He is an imposter!"

Jerec went on to explain in great detail how he had found the research notes, how they had been deleted from official records, and what they meant. When Jerec finished his tale, which bordered on a rant, he glared at Zander.

"Do you deny this evidence against you?"

"No, I do not".

"Then with your guilt established-"

"Jerec!" interrupted Leliana. "Listen to yourself! What is he guilty of?"

"Deception, lies and fraud. I thought we already established this?"

"Where in our law does it say that other species are not permitted to accidentally become a lombax, and that they have to declare their former status?"

"_Our law_ is not relevant when it did not take into account that this was even possible! However it clearly states that punishment may be handed down to anyone if a vote is in favour!"

Leliana widened her eyes. This was it. Jerec had finally challenged her, albeit indirectly, for power over the Senate.

"Fine. But before the vote is cast, I believe Zander has the right to speak in self-defense. Zander?" All eyes were on the black lombax as he appeared to gather words from the far reaches of his mind. He appeared very small with the banks of senators staring down at him. Finally, he spoke.

"I do not pretend that any of what Jerec has said is a lie. But I feel I must say I kept this a secret from you all because I feared something such as this would happen. I have nothing else to say. Judge me as you wish".

Leliana had a moment of admiration for Zander's spirit. He was clearly afraid, but he maintained his dignity all through it. A useful trait for a leader, Leliana noted.

"Votes in favour of punishing Zander Renn for his deception?" came the voice of a senior senator.

All of the lombaxes on Jerec's side of the room raised their hands immediately. A few seconds later, Leliana felt a blow to her pride as several of her supporters raised their hands also. Not only had she been betrayed, but because of it, she had just lost the majority.

"The ayes have it. The punishment shall now be decided".

"No need", dismissed Jerec. "I invoke the right of victim's duel".

* * *

><p><strong>Yeah, it was kind of obvious that Jerec would end up bringing a duel into the equation. But what happens during and after the duel is the big surprise for you guys.<strong>

**It seemed a shame to leave Alister's awesome ship at the Great Clock for the rest of all time, so Zander has it now. What do you guys think of Contessa's personality? I was trying not to make her too Aphelion-y. The awesome name came from 'The Navigator' by Eoin McNamee.**

**And many many apologies for the update that took aaaaaages. I really am busy with preparation for uni, which starts tomorrow (studying archaeology, yay!). I will try to find the time to write in the midst of studies, but no guarantees.**


	28. Victim's Duel

**Victim's Duel**

Angela watched the bob of copper hair swaying back and forth slightly in front of her as she followed Leliana down the hallway. Not many high-ranking lombaxes did not tie their hair back, as it often looked untidy or informal. Leliana, however, was an individual who managed to maintain an air of respectability no matter how she dressed herself, and no matter the occasion. Angela silently wished she could let her own golden tresses down and still look professional, but she just didn't have the gift of carrying one's self with dignity.

After a short time, Leliana stopped at one of the many plain steel doors lining the corridor and leant towards a glowing panel beside it. A quiet beeping rang out, followed by a click, and the door swung open. Leliana ducked inside.

"Someone to see you" she said, then backed out and gestured for Angela to enter.

Angela walked through the door and it was closed behind her with a bang. Inside was a small cell, its only contents being a bench. Upon the bench sat Zander, shoulders slouched forward and chin resting on his palms.

"I'm sorry", said Angela. "I'm sorry about everything. If I hadn't told you to keep this all a secret-"

"It's fine", cut in Zander. "I'm just glad you're not going to be in the arena too".

"It looks like I get special fiancé anonymity. Listen, Zander, when you get in the ring with Jerec, just… be careful, okay?"

"Don't worry; I'm not planning on taking the expert duellist on head first".

"Then what _are_ you planning?"

"I don't know. I guess I've got to find a way to get him to end the fight without killing me".

Angela nearly burst into tears at Zander's apparent hopelessness, but she managed to restrain herself. From the moment he had told her his predicament and asked for her help, she had felt responsible for his well-being. And now, she had failed that bond. Not only that, but her own actions had backfired and made the situation worse than it should have been. So she did the only thing she could do.

She leaned forward and enfolded him in her arms.

At first Zander recoiled from the sudden gesture, but in no time at all seemed to relax slightly.

"You remind me of my mother", he said. "Only less naggy".

Angela, sensing that the moment had passed, pulled away and sat next to Zander on the bench.

"What's your mother like?" she inquired, genuinely interested.

"A pain in the behind, but one I'm finding it hard to live without. I'm technically an adult now, but I'm not sure I'm ready to start living without her watching".

"And your father?"

"I never knew him. I figure he must have died when I was young, because my mum's never acted like he ran out on her or anything".

Zander was silent for a while, then spoke.

"If I live through this, since we're back in this dimension, do you think you'd be able to get the stuff to change me back?"

"While I was examining your DNA, I came up with a few ideas that might work. When this whole thing's over I'll go back to Siberius. I've got a bunch of equipment there that will be handy".

"Time's up", came Leliana's muffled call from outside the door. Angela said her farewells, then left. As she found her own way back out of the prison complex, she decided what she was going to do to make up for her mistakes.

* * *

><p>Zander stepped out into the arena which had been set up in the city's main square. It was nothing but a ring of portable barriers, but true to lombax engineering skills was exactly circular. In the centre of the arena stood Jerec, leaning on his wrench, silently waiting. As Zander walked forward, he was bombarded with insults and urges to bolt alike. But despite this, he kept walking, becoming one step closer to his doom with every footfall. This was it. Either Jerec would show mercy and allow him to yield, or he would kill him. There was no third option. There was just live or die. Zander stopped five paces away from Jerec, as he had been told. Seeing no other option, he attempted to pacify the one who was now staring at him with a gaze that was as cold as the colour of his fur.<p>

"Jerec, why are you doing this?"

"Why?" Jerec spat out. "Because I was deceived by an enemy. Deceived into giving them my hospitality. Deceived into allowing them to gain power over my allies. Deceived into teaching them fighting traditions as old as the Great War itself!"

"You know I'll gladly make a public apology".

"More lies. There is nothing you can do which lies cannot devalue. Nothing but die".

And with that said, Jerec lunged.

Zander had to leap backwards to avoid Jerec's wrench, which barely missed his head. In one swift movement, Zander reached behind himself and retrieved his wrench, which snapped open, fully extended. He brought it up and parried another swing from Jerec, and the two weapons collided with a jarring jolt. Zander felt the shock travel right through his body, right to his teeth. Jerec proceeded to swing again and again, each time met by Zander's defence, but each time causing the black lombax to wince with the force of the impact.

Despite the onslaught, Zander realised that Jerec was attacking much more wildly than was characteristic of him in their sparring matches. Previously, his elegance had only been matched by his precision. But now, Jerec's only objective seemed to be to pound Zander into the earth on which he stood.

Soon Zander was forced to his knees. He desperately raised his wrench again, only to have it knocked out of his grasp. Then Zander saw stars as Jerec's wrench impacted his head full on and sent him sprawling.

Zander lay in the dirt, gasping for breath. Zander had endured worse pain before, but the physical strain on his limbs still immobilised him.

"What, one poke and the faker is down?" taunted Jerec. "At least give me a challenge!"

Outrage at Jerec's change then fuelled Zander's body, and he managed to push himself off the ground. Still on his knees, he lifted his gaze to throw a glare at Jerec. No sooner had this happened, than Jerec hit him in the side. Zander heard his ribs crack and he grunted, collapsing again.

"Stay down if you know what's good for you!"

Zander felt a wet trickle running down his forehead, and made a decision. He would _not_ go down like this, whether he was killed or not. On his knees, begging for mercy, maybe. But _not_ as an animal being put down. So, shaking with adrenalin, he pushed himself up again.

Jerec broke another rib, and Zander went down again. Jerec spat on him, the globule landing right in his eye.

Zander, unable to rise again, started crawling on his stomach towards Jerec. Around him, hundreds of voices demanded mercy. Hundreds of others called Jerec to finish it. Zander grabbed Jerec's ankle and pulled on it weakly, looking into his eyes.

Jerec raised his wrench again. Above his head, it gleamed in the sunlight. Zander knew it was the last thing he would ever see. It fell, and Zander closed his eyes in calm acceptance, wondering what awaited him on the other side.

Nothing happened.

Zander opened his eyes, and just as his vision blurred and he entered the realms of unconsciousness, he saw a white figure lying on the ground with a golden one crouching over it.

* * *

><p><strong>No, I haven't died. I had a bit of spare time today so I decided to update instead of my usual session of League of Legends XD.<strong>

**The duel was very clear in my head perhaps even before this story took shape. And no, this is not the end for this fic. Not by a long shot.**

**Also, any particular guesses why Jerec is so racist? There's more to it, I assure you.**

**Well, until next time guys. Keep those reviews coming!**


	29. The New Era Begins

**The New Era Begins**

Jerec stared in disgust at the pathetic life form clinging to his ankle. What would it take for the traitorous wretch to accept his fate? He had been thoroughly beaten, broken and bloodied, but his eyes still held determination. Jerec then decided it was of no matter. He had to put the animal down regardless of its demeanour.

Jerec raised his wrench, preparing to land the final blow; the blow that would end this pointless ordeal.

A familiar voice called out from somewhere behind Jerec for him to stop. But they just didn't understand. He had to do this. He shifted his weight to bring down his weapon.

"Jerec, no!" came the voice again, and suddenly Jerec felt his knees swept from under him, and he found himself falling to the ground. He hit his head on something, and his vision flickered. He came to rest, and tried to blink his surroundings into clarity.

Everything remained blurry, but there was one thing right in front of him that was clear as crystal; the face of his bride to be. Her lips moved, but he could not hear her. Then she pulled something off of her finger and placed it forcefully into his hand. He knew what it was.

Then she walked away, and he sank into a deep sleep.

* * *

><p><em>Zander again strained his eyes against the blackness, feeling the same presence watching him ceaselessly.<em>

_Then a figure, their face masked in shadow, stepped out of nothing._

"_Zander Renn", they said calmly._

_Zander twitched at the words. He had not heard them with his ears, of that he was sure._

"_Who are you?" Zander asked. "How do you know my name?"_

"_Who I am, you will find out when the time is right. As to how I know your name, is it really so surprising, given where we are?"_

"_My subconscious. Right"._

"_What is really important is not who I am, but who _you_ are Mister Renn. We have been watching you for some time now, and what we see is potential"._

"_Who's 'we'?"_

"_All in time. Suffice to say, you could go very far. You could be the best of us. We will contact you when the moment is right"._

_And with that, the blackness enveloped the figure again and they were gone. Zander once more scoured the dark, looking for any signs. There was nothing, and then;_

Beep.

_Zander wondered what the strange sound could mean. And then he heard it again. _Beep. _Suddenly light flooded his vision and he woke._

"Heya buddy. Any good dreams?" asked Ratchet, leaning over Zander.

The black lombax managed a groan of affirmation. He lazily glanced around and saw a whitewashed room with steel instruments everywhere. Beside him one of them beeped steadily.

"It is good to see you all right, Zander", Clank added from the foot of Zander's bed.

* * *

><p>A pale figure entered the darkened interior of the Court of Azimuth, stealthily creeping towards its centre. Once there, he crouched. He checked to make sure nobody was watching, and then placed his palm on a symbol set into the floor. A low clicking broke the silence, followed by the rumbling of long-forgotten machinery. The circular patch of steel on which the figure was situated started to descend into the ground. He stood, and allowed it to carry him into the bowels of the planet.<p>

When the platform finally came to a halt, the figure quickly stepped off. The platform then began its return ascent and blocked out the dim stream of light coming from its origin. The figure touched a spot on his shoulder, and his armour lit up dimly, illuminating the area just enough for him to make out the long, dusty hallway. He wasted no time in walking down it, each step more confident than the last. After some time, and several turns in the passageway, the figure came to a door, beside which was an individual with their arms crossed.

"You're late", they said.

"You're early", the newcomer countered. "Did you pass the message on as I instructed?"

"Yes. And every single one responded quite enthusiastically to the call".

"Good". The first figure then stepped towards the door and placed his palm against a symbol identical to the one on the floor of the Court. The door grated open, moaning at the long years of no use. The figure stepped into the gloom behind the door, and reached around the corner, flicking a switch.

In sequence, floodlights revealed a massive chamber. It extended beyond the figure's vision in every direction. Within the chamber, many hulking masses of technology loomed over him. They looked undamaged. The figure turned to his accomplice.

"We have work to do".

* * *

><p><strong>Yeah, it's another shorter chap, and a bit montage-y, but what you going to do? At least be thankful that I updated so soon.<strong>

**Any ideas what these 'hulking masses of technology' might be? And who has work to do? And what work it might be? Ooh, mysteries abound!**

**I'm actually quite proud of some of the sections of this particular chapter, so do let me know if my pride is well-founded in reviews please!**


	30. Happens

****** Happens**

In a small room, Angela sat cross-legged on the floor and cradled a picture frame as if it were a dead child. A small tear dripped from her chin and landed on the image of her and a smiling white male lombax. That lombax was gone now, lost to cruel circumstance. The Jerec she knew would never have killed any innocent. He never would have ignored her pleading to show mercy. He never would have made her return that perfect silver ring.

As much as she knew it was futile, she wished the old Jerec were back. She wished he were there to hold her as he always did. But now there was no one there.

A low tone signalled someone's presence outside the door. Angela, wiping the tears from her eyes, stood, walked over and opened it. On the other side was Zander.

"Oh", he said after seeing Angela. "I'm sorry, this is a bad time. I'll come back later".

Angela thought about letting him go, but she decided she needed some company after what she did.

"No, it's fine. Come in". She stepped aside, and after a moment of hesitation, Zander entered. "Someone managed to find some nanotech then?" she said, trying to avoid the topic that she knew was on both their minds.

"Yeah" he replied, avoiding her gaze respectfully as the door closed behind him. "It's nice not to be bleeding anymore".

"Good". She cast about for another subject. "I'll leave for Siberius in a few days. It'll be good to see my old lab again".

"You mean the 'Mysterious Thief's' lab?"

Angela blinked in surprise.

"How did you know that?"

"Uh… Clank told me about it. Said you were quite the fighter".

"Right".

"Listen, Angela, I came because, well… I heard what you did after I got knocked out. I can't help but feel partly responsible".

Tears threatened to break out of their hastily constructed prison.

"I was engaged to Jerec, I… broke it off with someone else" she said, mentally adding layers to her prison's security.

"I understand. Before he found out, he was like a brother to me. And now…"

And then Angela did something she did not expect. She threw herself forward and buried herself in Zander's chest. She heard a sharp intake of breath, then he relaxed and held her gently. She needed this right now. Someone to confide in. Besides, it was only fair that he returned the favour sometime.

"Thanks", she mumbled.

"No problem, I guess" he replied.

And so it was that she lost all track of time, letting the tears of regret fall freely. She felt safe, and for a time, the outside world did not matter.

After a while, Angela reluctantly pulled back, though she did not break the contact entirely. She looked into his eyes, and tried to send her gratitude for his presence over that link. She saw his understanding in return.

And then, propelled into action on a whim, she thrust her lips onto his.

"Agh!" cried Zander in apparent terror as he retreated and fell backwards onto the floor. Angela's eyes widened at what she had just done.

"I'm sorry! I don't know what came over me!" she hastily declared. She really meant it. What was she thinking, kissing him like that?

Zander cautiously got up and brushed himself off, but he did not re-establish eye contact with her. She didn't blame him.

"It's alright", he said to the floor. "People do things they don't plan on when they're upset".

As right as he was, Angela still couldn't believe what she did. She hadn't even remembered ever feeling _attracted _to him.

"I'd, uh… better leave" he continued. "Gotta check on Contessa".

Then Zander turned and left without a word, and Angela collapsed to her knees. What had she done?

* * *

><p>Zander hastily left the building, staring at his feet as he made his way back to the spaceport. He chided himself for being so stupid. What had he been thinking, visiting her in her room like that after what she'd been through? He should have left as soon as he saw Angela was upset. She was in a vulnerable state, and he had let himself go along with it. No, he had taken <em>advantage<em> of her. Unintentionally, yes, but he could have stopped it. Zander chose not to think about the implications of being kissed by a character in a video game. That would simply cause more frustration than it was worth.

Zander looked up and was surprised to find the street he was walking down was far less crowded than was usual. The usual swarm of lombaxes had reduced to just a trickle. The resettlement efforts were finishing, he decided.

Zander turned into the spaceport to find Contessa hovering just where he had left her.

"What took you so long?" she declared as he approached. "Did you expect me to just sit here doing nothing all week, you ungrateful little-"

"It's nice to see you too" Zander said before she could proceed. "I'm so glad you were concerned for my safety".

"_Your_ safety! What about mine? I've had to raise my shields repeatedly to deflect hostile fire, you know".

"Hostile fire?"

"Yes! Those flying reptilian monstrosities keep bombarding me from on high!"

Zander suppressed a smirk. He knew Contessa wouldn't appreciate it. And considering her usual attitude, he didn't exactly want to see her when she was actually _upset_.

Then an enormous rumbling filled the air, blotting out all other sound.

"What's that?" Zander shouted above the noise. It seemed to be coming from all around him, like the very planet was about to explode, which could have very well occurred given what this universe had already decided to throw at him.

"I'm detecting major seismic activity. Did they serve beans in the mess hall last night?" Despite her sarcasm, there was evident concern in Contessa's voice, and she opened her canopy.

Zander did not hesitate for a second and jumped in. Contessa quickly lifted off and gained altitude quickly. Zander looked out at the surrounding city and gasped.

Just outside the city, on the plains, the ground was parting. A long gap had appeared and was widening steadily, revealing unknown depths. Zander's first thought was that it was an earthquake, but the gap was too linear and was opening too evenly for it to be a naturally forming canyon.

"Oh, I didn't ever think I'd see this day" remarked Contessa.

"What day? What are you talking about?"

"You imbecile! Somebody's finally reactivated the fleet".

"The fleet?" As if in answer to his query, a dark shape started rising up from the cavernous space which had formed. Bit by bit, all over it, lights were activated. At its rear a massive set of engines started, emitting a subtle blue glow and a not-so-subtle noise. The entire thing was massive, easily throwing a large section of the city into shadow.

"Contessa, bring Leliana on the line".

"What, not even a 'please'? I just _had _to get stuck with you, didn't I?" Before Zander could respond, Leliana's face flickered onto Contessa's holoscreen.

"Zander! Do you know what's going on?" demanded Leliana.

"I contacted you to ask the same thing. A ship's just risen from the ground and-"

"I know that! What I want to know is who's responsible".

"No idea".

Another voice started from off-screen.

"Ma'am, more of the ships are powering up. We're trying to shut them off, but someone's overriding us".

"Well override them back, damn it!"

"Yes, Ma'am". A short delay followed, then the voice spoke again. "Ma'am, the _Liberator_ is broadcasting on all frequencies. Shall I put it on-screen?"

"Yes, and make it quick!"

Seeing there was no more point in prolonging his contact with the consul, Zander ordered Contessa to switch to playing the broadcast. She muttered something about 'still no manners', and promptly switched the channel. Zander watched the holoscreen as a face intimately familiar to him presented itself.

"Lombaxes, my friends" addressed Jerec. "I have always felt it is my duty to protect our noble race from those who would weaken and destroy it. Recent events have, unfortunately, forced me to act on this prerogative in a way I had hoped was not necessary. An infection has lodged itself in our great society. Worse still, it has put itself in a position to be called a 'friend' in order to fight us from within".

As much as Zander hated it, he knew exactly what Jerec was on about.

"Already the infection has poisoned the minds of our leaders, and thus to persuade them that the infection is a threat, I must regrettably provide proper incentive. Those left untainted and I have, as you may have already guessed, taken control of the Great War fleet. In exactly twenty-four hours, those who remain loyal to the intrusion shall find their city in ruins. Those who see the truth may join us in orbit of planet Kortog, where the fleet that defended the galaxy during the Great War shall ensure its security once again. In order to prevent the total sterilisation of Fastoon, the one known as Zander Renn must be executed. That is all".

Zander sat in stunned silence.

* * *

><p><strong>The title of the chapter says it all. Maximum drama levels, engage!<strong>

**Gee, I've been churning these things out, huh? I've found that the train back from uni is a very convenient time to write. Not sure about the rest of the week, though, as I only take the train on Mon and Tue.**

**It only made sense that the lombaxes would have a Great War fleet lying around somewhere, given the implied scale of that particular conflict.**

**And Angela, you naughty girl! You shouldn't do that! XD**


	31. Sacrifice

**Sacrifice**

Zander entered the Court of Azimuth to the deafening roar of heated, disorganised debate. In the centre of the Court were a crowd of senators, each one of them arguing with their neighbour. On the main consuls' podium, Zander spotted the dark outline of Leliana, sitting with her head in her hands. Zander was shocked at her weak stature. Never had he seen her without that fire in her gaze, or without her air of command. But now, around her, chaos raged. Seeing no other course of action, and apparently unnoticed by the preoccupied senators, Zander swiftly approached the podium and ascended.

"Uh… Ma'am?" Zander said, trying to attract Leliana's attention. He didn't really know what he should address her as in this sort of situation.

"Huh, what?" she said as she looked up. "Oh, Zander, it's you". She allowed her head to droop again. "Shouldn't you be down there arguing as well?"

"I'm sorry I've caused this whole thing. You can tell them all that they can stop. I've made my decision".

"Decision? What are you talking about?"

"I'm handing myself in".

As soon as those words left Zander's lips, Leliana did something he did not expect. She laughed, and in response the whole senate became silent and stared at her.

"Were you even listening to the argument down there, Zander?" she said. "This isn't a debate whether to execute you or not, this is a _war_ council".

"Wh… What?" responded Zander, not believing what he was hearing. "You'd go to war instead of eliminate the one source of division within your race?"

"Exactly. Everyone here is in agreement. Not only do we not feel like killing you, we also know that Jerec has overstepped the line. He's planning something else as well, and none of us think it's going to be beneficial to the galaxy. Appeasement won't help anything".

Leliana then stood and placed her hand on Zander's shoulder.

"You are just Jerec's excuse".

Zander felt humbled.

"What can I do to help, then?"

Leliana sagged her shoulders again.

"You can come up with a way for us to wage a war. Jerec's taken all but the _Fastoon's Pride_ and the _Voidflare_, plus their fighter complements. We'd just be wasting lives if we sent two capital ships into battle, and we don't have any surface-to-orbit weaponry".

"What about the Polaris government? Don't they have a fleet?"

"Only a few security patrol craft. Solana has a more substantial defence force, but they'd take months to get here".

Zander soon noticed everyone in the room was looking at him.

"What, you're all _that _dry of ideas?" he called to the senators. As one, they all slowly nodded. "Well, just let me think for a while, okay? Just… continue arguing or something".

The room erupted into chaos again.

Zander racked his brain for answers. Why had he suddenly become the 'idea guy', anyway? He still technically held his executive overseer position, but as far as he knew there were no military duties involved. Then he hit on it. Zander had become the symbol of the division of the lombaxes. If you were a lombax, you either supported his right to exist, or you didn't. The implications of this revelation were daunting. Was he doomed to become the symbol of a war that should never have taken place? It would have been better if they decided to execute him. But there was no arguing with the logic that his execution was only Jerec's first step towards whatever it was he was planning.

As far as a way out of his supporters' current predicament, Zander knew no way. There was no sufficient military force available, but the fact remained that Jerec had decided to flatten Fastoon's capital tomorrow. A capital which had only just been resettled by a race which had been stranded in the middle of nowhere, surviving however they could. Then it hit him.

"How many can the ships we're left with carry?" Zander said to Leliana.

"A few hundred crew, plus two thousand warriors and pilots and possibly five thousand passengers on each, if I remember my military history correctly. Why?"

"And how many have stayed here?"

"Seven thousand, give or take…" Leliana seemed to grasp what Zander was getting at. Suddenly, she stood to her full height and bellowed orders.

* * *

><p>Ratchet watched from the consul compound's balcony as lombaxes rushed about the streets in preparation for the operation to come. His tail twitched repeatedly.<p>

"What is wrong, Ratchet?" asked Clank from beside him.

"You remember that whole business with Nefarious in Solana, Clank?"

"It is not easy to forget, Ratchet".

"We were always going from planet to planet, stopping Nefarious' plans, leading the Rangers into battle against the Tyhrranoids, deciding where to go next…"

"You do not like sitting still" said Clank. "Perhaps our time as galactic heroes is coming to a close, just as it did with Captain Starshield, Ace Hardlight and even Captain Qwark".

"Oh, no. I'm not letting war break out around me without firing a few shots".

"The universe will always need us, Ratchet. I am saying that it may need others as well. Other kinds of heroes".

"You may be right, buddy. You may be right".

* * *

><p><strong>Damn, what is this? The fourth chapter since I started uni or something? I should have applied ages ago.<strong>

**The tail end of this fic was pretty spontaneous. I realised that I hadn't really mentioned Ratchet and Clank since the lombaxes returned, so they deserved a short bit. Don't worry, Ratchet will still see some action, but the focus won't really be on him. He's going to remain as badass as ever, though!**

**I've probably made it pretty obvious what the 'Zanderite' (note to self: name sides) lombaxes are planning.**

**And thanks for the boom in reviews, guys! Three (arguably five) overnight! Keep 'em coming!**


	32. The End of the Beginning

**The End of the Beginning**

A Kortogian meandered through the lofty streets of Stratus City, hands in his pockets and head hanging low. Just like every morning he made this journey, the fierce winds of the upper atmosphere threatened to tear his jacket off. He did not need to look up to know which way to head. He paid no attention to the other citizens as they bustled past him. He did not have time for their cheery faces or that ever so annoying merriment. Tachyon's troopers may have been gone, but so was _she_.

The Kortogian came to the edge of the platform that he and his daughter had stood on twenty years ago. He could still hear her screams as she fell towards the planet's surface miles below. He could still feel the vicelike grip of the robotic suit of a drophyd trooper as it held him, powerless to save her. Why did she have to be so brave? He would have gladly spent eternity in Zordoom just to have left her at home on that fateful day.

And all for the taxes he could not pay.

He looked up to where the dusty holoscreen still sat; the same holoscreen that the emperor would address his loyal citizens through. The last such address had been something about a lombax and the theft of an imperial star cruiser. Then, unexpectedly, the screen flickered to life.

This time, the face of Tachyon, hidden beneath an oversized crown, did not fill the screen, rather the face of a white lombax.

"Citizens of Stratus City", it began. "For twenty years you were oppressed under the rule of Percival Tachyon. Without the lombax guardians of this galaxy, you were powerless to liberate yourselves".

Lombax guardians? Twenty years ago, they were in self-isolation, working on some unknown project.

"You need not fear for your freedom any longer", said the lombax. "Today I, Jerec Farr, consul, announce a new, securer galaxy. We were too passive in the past, and as such the galaxy fell into chaos. To prevent this from happening again, I am establishing the Greater Polaris Security Sphere. The lombaxes, as the traditional custodians of Polaris since their leadership of the rebellion against the Cragmite Empire, shall direct the Sphere into a new age of security and prosperity".

As Jerec spoke, the sky was filled with starfighters flying over the city in formation, along with small landing craft. One of these craft hovered just above the platform which the Kortogian was standing on, and six armed lombaxes grappled down from it. They arranged themselves in formation while Jerec continued.

"Stratus City has been chosen as the capital of the Sphere. Please remain in your homes while our trained staff see to the rearrangement of your existing government".

And before history could repeat itself, the Kortogian followed his daughter to freedom.

* * *

><p><strong>I know, I know, this chapter was <em>REALLY<em> short. Next one _should_ be the opposite, so please forgive me.**

**History buffs might see the parallel to the 'Greater East Asia Co-Prosperity Sphere' that the Japanese government of the 1930s claimed as their goal in their various conquests (leading into WWII). Of course, since then, Japan's become a really cool place. I need to visit sometime.**

**Those reading between the lines might also be able to spot a slight parallel to Tachyon's empire. That comparison is REALLY important. Keep it in mind. First one to guess _exactly_ why it's significant gets a cookie.**

**Next chapter might include a bit of a battle scene. Or a large chunk of one...**

**If you're interested as well, I've just submitted my first Inheritance Cycle fanfic, a oneshot entitled 'If I Were a Dragon'. It's lacking in reviews right now, so any feedback would be appreciated. *Ends shameless self-advertising***


	33. The First Shot

**Finally, after all this time, you guys get the new chappie! I've been fairly distracted by my Inheritance Cycle fic lately. Ah well, hold on to your seats, folks, because this one's going to get _intense_. It was shorter than I planned, because I decided to be mean and stick you with a major cliffhangar. I know, I'm evil, right? Also, there's a fair bit of scene-swap going on, so if you're having trouble keeping up, do let me know and I'll try not to do it again. But for now, I think it works in this particular chapter's favour.**

**Epic chapter, BEGIN!**

* * *

><p><strong>The First Shot<strong>

"Entering Fastoon space in three, two, one", said the pilot of the _Liberty_.

Jerec said nothing as the familiar beige orb of his home planet burst into view beyond the bridge's large viewport.

"Your orders, sir?"

"Communications officer!" snapped Jerec, prompting the dozens of lombaxes at their stations to briefly look at him in alarm before resuming their duties.

One of them stood to attention. "Yes, sir?"

"Open up a channel to the Court of Azimuth".

The communications officer tapped out a few commands on his display screen. "There's no response, sir", he stated after a few minutes.

"You're sure?"

"Positive".

Jerec pointed to a female with dark grey fur and white stripes stationed at a bank of monitors to his right. "I want a full scan of the capital, now".

"Right away".

"Leliana's up to something. It's not like her to ignore a basic formality like acknowledging our presence". Jerec then reached up to his neck and held one of the many small buttons on his collar. "All heavy weapons crews, stand by".

"Sir, the scanners say the city is deserted!"

Jerec widened his eyes, then jumped into action, tossing orders in every direction.

"Get me a full scanner sweep of the sector! Launch all fighters! I want every lombax in the fleet battle-ready!"

"But sir, no targ- Wait. We've got two ships leaving the atmosphere fast. The databanks label them as the _Fastoon's Pride_ and the _Voidflare_".

"_Now_ I've got you", whispered Jerec to himself.

* * *

><p>Zander adjusted his grip on Contessa's controls as she left the atmosphere and entered the black void of space. He looked to the right to see Aphelion still alongside with Ratchet at the wheel. Ratchet noticed his look and gave a quick nod of acknowledgement.<p>

"_You holding up, buddy?"_ came Ratchet's voice over the communications system.

"Considering I'm probably about to be part of a full-scale _battle_", Zander said cautiously, "I think I'm holding up pretty well".

"Holding up _well_?" interjected Contessa. "Your pulse has gone up by two hundred per cent in the past five minutes!"

"Hey Contessa?"

"Yes?"

"Shut up". Before Contessa could respond, another voice crackled onto the comm.

"_This is Verpine Lead. All fighters form up behind me. For all you non-military folks, follow the shiny black one up front"_

Zander squinted, and ahead of him he could make out the faint specks of the rest of Verpine Squadron in loose formation. It was the largest of the three fighter groups in their force, as it was made up of all those with no formal position in the lombax military, but who could still pilot a ship. There were mixed opinions on the formation, because while many were inexperienced in space combat, Zander included, there were some old veterans come out of retirement. Plus there was Ratchet, who had earned the fond title of 'royal bug splatter'.

As Zander and Ratchet joined the scattered group, Verpine Lead cut in again.

"_Nobody needs to go to the bathroom, right?"_

There was scattered laughing over the squadron's channel.

* * *

><p>Leliana stared at the holographic tactical map of the space around Fastoon with the same intensity as kept her supporters in line for so long. Some distance away from the planet's image, a cluster of fifty or so blocky objects, arrayed in close formation, denoted Jerec's fleet. Slowly approaching them were the diminutive figures of the <em>two <em>ships under her control. They were much larger than any of Jerec's ships, but they were still only two.

"I sure hope Zander knows what he's doing", Leliana growled.

"Do not worry, miss", said Clank from beside her. "Zander possesses a tactical mind far beyond his experience, and as you said yourself: we have no better course of action".

"It's not the _plan_ I'm worried about. It's the two thousand pulse cannons pointed directly at us".

"Ma'am, Verpine Squadron reports they are in position!" came a voice from one corner of the bridge of the _Voidflare_.

Leliana leaned forward onto the handrail surrounding the tactical map and took a breath. "Signal them to begin".

"Yes, ma'am"

"The die is cast", whispered Leliana.

* * *

><p>"<em>Verpine Squadron, that's our cue, let's kick some tail"<em> said Verpine lead over the comm.

Zander listened as the rest of the squadron responded with a series of cheers, whoops and whistles.

"_Engage warp drives o__n my signal, Verpines. Three. Two. One. Mark"._

Zander vigorously tapped a button on Contessa's dashboard, and in the blink of an eye, he found himself heading directly towards the _Fastoon's Pride_. He checked the power level on his weapons, then increased to attack speed, surging forward with the rest of the squadron.

"_Verpine Squadron, engage!"_ came the command.

Zander hit the trigger.

And so the first shot of the Lombax Civil War impacted its target in a fiery burst of destruction.

* * *

><p><strong>Yup, you read that right, Verpine Squadron has just fired upon their own. They're already outnumbered, but now they want infighting as well? Confused much?<strong>

**I hope you all got as excited reading this as I did writing it, and this battle isn't even the climax in proper yet. I just wish I had the resources to make a movie out of this. =(**


	34. Charades

**Charades**

Jerec looked on in disbelief as a group of lombax fighters warped into view and unleashed a torrent of laser fire at the _Fastoon's Pride_'s starboard hull. A series of multi-coloured explosions confirmed the direct hit. The newcomers could not be his own forces; he would never fail to notice a rogue squadron, let alone one with this little discipline in formation. The fighters bore the distinct hull shape of lombax-designed craft, so that eliminated the possibility of foreign attack. There was only one likelihood left for consideration: Leliana's own had turned on her.

As if on cue, the communications officer spoke up. "Sir, the _Voidflare _is hailing us on emergency channels".

"Put it through!" Jerec almost grinned at how the situation was turning from advantage to victory, before he even had to order a single shot fired.

A large holoscreen lowered down from the dark, metallic ceiling with a low buzz. Leliana's face appeared on it, with what Jerec guessed to be her ship's bridge in the background. Behind her, consoles were flashing and lombaxes were running in a panic from one to the other.

"Jerec! Don't destroy the city!"

A muffled explosion rang out, followed by a brief flicker of static on the screen.

"Why shouldn't I? You haven't executed the pretender yet".

"Just… listen to me! Zander managed to escape after we captured him".

"It sounds to me as if you _let_ him escape".

"My _son_ helped him".

Jerec gave a pleasant nod of agreement. Despite Ratchet's lack of military discipline, there was no dismissing his quite crowded resume, daring rescues included.

"We've evacuated the city", said Leliana. "Just in case you decided not to believe me. But, as it turns out, Zander managed to gather his supporters and he's causing us quite a few difficulties right now".

Jerec turned over his shoulder. "I want a magnified view of that fighter group!"

Without a word, another holoscreen lowered to confirm Leliana's story. Jerec could make out Contessa and Aphelion clearly amongst the _mutineers_.

"Very well, Leliana. Guide your ships past the _Liberty_. Its point-defence systems should be more than enough to solve all your problems".

"Thank you, Jerec".

"And… Leliana?"

"Yes?"

"I presume this means you are with me on my latest venture?"

"Absolutely". Leliana's face vanished as the signal ended.

Jerec stared at the blank screen in satisfaction for a moment. Then he resumed his former air of command. "Point-defence crews on full alert!"

* * *

><p>"Did you get all that, Zander?"<p>

"I did, ma'am", replied the black lombax as he let loose yet another salvo at the _Voidflare_'s hull.

"It looks like your little charade will work after all. I'm impressed".

"It's not over yet, ma'am. Keep firing back at us; we can't let the act falter".

"Indeed. Are you sure you want to proceed with the next step, though? I don't like Verpine Squadron's chances against the _Liberty_".

"The later Jerec notices something is up, the better".

"Very well. Verpine Leader?"

The faceless voice of Verpine Squadron's lead responded. "Yes, ma'am?"

"Make sure your people all have the necessary preparations in order, and tell them to be careful out there. I don't want to have to hand out medals posthumously tonight".

"Will do".

"Leliana out".

Zander zoned out as Verpine Leader gave the obligatory pre-battle speech. Zander was sure it was both rousing and emboldening, but he honestly just didn't care. What would his mother say if she could see him now, making the plans that could very well result in the deaths of thousands? He imagined her calm voice lecturing him once again.

"_Now don't go looking for trouble with the wrong crowd again today, Zandy"._

"_Mum, I told you to stop calling me that!"_

"_I'm your mother, it's my right"._

Oh, if only Zander had thought to listen to his mother's advice about the 'wrong crowd' on that day. Still, there had been no way of knowing that inter-dimensional travel would be involved, and there was no use worrying about it now.

Zander shook himself free of his thoughts, and instead concentrated on his loop past the _Fastoon's Pride_'s bridge. Passing the large viewport, he could make out the entire bridge personnel.

Angela stood at one of the foremost consoles, poring over the display. She looked up for a brief moment, and spotted him. She nodded to him as he flew past.

He nodded back, and then she was gone from view.

The two capital ships were approaching the centre of Jerec's fleet now, where his flagship was leading the massive formation.

Zander engaged the coms channel again. "All right everyone, remember: We have to look reluctant to go toe-to-toe with a battlecruiser, especially when our two frigates won't be helping out. Just follow my lead". Zander then resumed his bombardment of the _Voidflare_, causing more large explosions to cover its surface. As soon as it came within close range of the _Liberty_, however, he pulled back, as did the rest of the squadron.

"This is it, people", came the voice of Verpine Leader again. "Any last words?"

"Let's just kick their asses already!"

"Acknowledged, Krandon. Verpines, increase to full throttle. Don't be easy to hit".

Then Verpine Squadron dove into the hornets' nest, covered in honey.

Zander had never imagined the amount of laser fire that could fill his view in one moment. The _Liberty_ was bristling with turrets, at least five pointed at each Verpine fighter. Zander couldn't avoid getting hit by a few yellow beams. Contessa's shields absorbed them, but they couldn't for long.

"Remember, Verpines, _don't_ hit the _Liberty_, or this'll be over fast".

Zander managed to get a few shots off at the _Voidflare_'s hull, but was mostly occupied with not colliding with one of the capital ships or their fire.

"Shields to eighty-seven per cent", declared Contessa. "Remind me why you didn't let _me_ fly, again?"

Zander ignored her and took note of how far the _Pride_ and the _Voidflare_ were past Jerec's flagship. They were about a third of the distance needed.

"Can't keep this up for much longer, guys" said Ratchet over the coms. "Can't mum go any faster?"

"She's got to look like she _wants_ to hang around", replied Zander.

"Shields to thirty per cent", interjected Contessa again.

"But I agree; this is taking way too long". Zander glanced again at their 'targets'. They were almost there. Just a few more seconds.

"Five per cent".

"This is Verpine Leader. I've lost my shie-" The transmission was cut off by a cloud of static.

Out of the corner of his eye, Zander thought he saw a large orange flash. Perhaps it was just one of the _Liberty_'s lasers.

"Zander, we're through!" said Leliana's voice. "I repeat, we're through! Get out of there!"

"Verpine Squadron, engage warp drives!"

And with that, the _Fastoon's Pride_, the _Voidflare_ and the entirety of Verpine Squadron shot into the star-filled abyss.

* * *

><p>Jerec's satisfied smirk disappeared as both his adversaries' ships disappeared into warp space and the guns ceased fire. There was silence on the bridge of the <em>Liberty.<em> All eyes were directed to its commander.

With a sudden growl of frustration, Jerec swung around and punched a nearby console. He felt several of his fingers dislocate, but he did not shirk at the pain. "Commence the bombardment", he spat out from between gritted teeth. "and find me some nanotech", he added.

"Uh… sir? Are you all right?"

"I'm fine!" Jerec snapped. "I'll be in my quarters". Then he stalked off the bridge.

* * *

><p><strong>Well, what do you think? Did I manage to pull off a nice action sequence again? I'm not really sure where this stands against 'Ratchet versus the cragmites', which I'm still kinda proud of .<strong>

**The finer points of the 'battle' will be revealed next chapter, followed by the aftermath and a bit more politics/strategising. So don't expect another battle so soon! That being said, however, a war **_**did**_** just start… I will say no more.**

**Now **_**gimme reviews**_**!**


	35. The Price of Life

**The Price of Life**

MACK REID

_FIGHTER, FRIEND, FATHER_

Zander ran his fingers along the simple words engraved on the casket's surface. Despite the layer of downy fur between his skin and the metallic lid, he could feel the cold emanating from within just as clearly as he could feel the cold emanating from around him.

Mack Reid. Until two hours ago, the one Zander had simply known as Verpine Lead would have been standing with him in the _Voidflare_'s hangar.

Zander felt a gentle touch on his right knee, but refused to tear his eyes away from the last name used for the fallen pilot.

_Father_.

Somewhere in the crowd gathered behind him was little Ricky. Zander could not bear to turn around and look into the pale blue eyes of Mack's son, but could still hear the muted sobs as Ricky buried his face into the crook of his aunt's neck.

"It is not your fault, Zander", said Clank's hushed, even voice to his right.

"Come on, buddy. It's time", said Ratchet from his left.

Zander let his arm fall. His eyes moved to the grey lombax who had guarded the Senate before their return to the home dimension. The male no longer held the ancient ceremonial wrench. Instead, he bore a smaller, less intricate model, but this wrench held much more meaning to Zander.

The weapon was delicately placed on the casket, but even with the grey male's care the resulting hollow clunk betrayed the lack of a body within.

Zander did not stay to watch the casket's journey out of the energy field and into the dark void. He did not stay to see the rest of Verpine Squadron clasp their fists over their chests in the lombax salute.

He simply made for the exit, and none attempted to stop him.

That night, Zander dreamt of nothing and everything.

* * *

><p><em><strong>Wow. My Authors' Notes just deleted themselves as soon as I finished writing them for some reason. Ah well, here they are again:<strong>_

**I apologise dearly for the _very_ short chapter, but I've had some real trouble with writers' block over the past weeks, and hopefully this minor addition to the story will pave the way for a more major one.**

**I've also made a big decision: _WITHIN THE NEXT FEW CHAPTERS THE OMNIVERSE CHRONICLES: BOOK ONE WILL END_.**

**"Oh noes!" you say? Well, don't worry, because _I WILL BE STARTING BOOK TWO SOON!_**

_**Dang. It just deleted half my typing again. Well, one more shot:**_

**Why am I inserting a book gap? Three reasons:**

**1. I really need to breathe, and attack this story with renewed efforts.**

**2. This is the best place to insert a gap anytime soon.**

**3. I haven't exactly been planning my writing properly. I know, I know, shame on me. _Everyone_ around here plans their stories *cough!* Anyway, I always knew the general direction I was headed, just not my method of transit. This might have been adequate for my more episodic earlier chapters, but now that my plot is deepening, it's becoming woefully inadequate. A book gap will allow me to change my ways for the better. Hopefully plot, chapter and sentence flow will improve drastically.**

**Thanks to all my awesome reviewers for helping me get to this milestone (even if it is now much closer than I initially thought). I love you guys. Don't stop being awesome.**

**Special thanks goes to Magic of Every Kind and KiwiLombax. It's humbling to receive encouragement from the writers of some of my favourite fiction in existence (I'm serious).**

**Also, you can blame at least part of my lack of submissions on some of the older stories that I've been browsing lately. Damn I love FFNet!**

**Ah well, until next time!**


	36. It Begins

**Here we are; the FINAL CHAPTER, and I managed to make it longer this time! Brace yourself for more **** happening, plus the return of an old friend.**

* * *

><p><strong>It Begins<strong>

Zander left his quarters with a yawn, though it was more habitual than due to fatigue. The corridor he entered bustled with lombaxes trotting here and there, and he sensed he had been asleep for far too long. He had duties to perform.

_What duties?_ he asked himself. He had a pervading sense of imminent responsibility, but the immediate crisis was over. So why did he feel he had a lot to do?

He shrugged off the thought, then started to navigate the _Voidfare_'s complex passages towards the bridge.

Along the way, several lombaxes stopped in their tracks and stood aside quickly, saluting.

Zander at first thought that Leliana might be trailing behind him, but when he looked, there was no one there. Unsure of how to respond to the apparent gesture of respect, he simply thanked them and moved on. It was only until he was disappearing round the corner that they appeared to go on with their business.

Zander stepped onto the bridge, with its panoramic view of space and numerous consoles, before each of which stood a busy operator. A curved expanse of green filled half the void outside, along with two other ships. Zander looked closer. He could have sworn that before he went to bed there was only one other ship in the fleet. Understanding dawned on him when he managed to identify one as the _Phoenix_. Of course; Ratchet would be more than eager to donate his personal capital vessel. That must also mean the planet they appeared to be orbiting was Jasindu.

Zander looked about for Leliana, who would undoubtedly have some task or another for him, but she was nowhere to be found.

He found it odd that the consul would not be on their own flagship's bridge.

Then a uniformed golden female approached Zander and saluted. "Commander Renn. Angela Cross asked that you be notified-"

"Wait… who?" asked Zander, not quite believing what his ears were telling him.

"Miss Angela Cr-"

"No, before that".

Before the officer could get any more words out, Leliana's powerful voice came from behind Zander.

"_Commander_ Renn".

Zander turned around to find himself staring straight into the lombax leader's piercing green eyes. He glanced away quickly. It was not possible to maintain eye contact with Leliana for more than a few seconds. "You're promoting me?"

"Yes. I was very impressed by what happened over Fastoon. Exploding paint to make the damage seem critical, even when hardly any power is going to the offending weapon? Genius".

Zander almost fell over. Compliments from Leliana? She _must_ have meant it. "But I haven't even entered the military!"

"If you were born a lombax you would have already been given a rank when you reached adulthood. Every one of us is expected to fight when the time comes, but that's besides the point. You're commander of the fleet and captain of this vessel now, and that's my _final_ word. If we're going to have a chance at stopping my former co-consul's mad crusade, we _need_ people like you".

If he was arguing with _anyone_ else, Zander would have pointed out he didn't know the first thing about leading a military force. But this was Leliana, and the way she stressed _final_ gave him the feeling she would make him Jerec's replacement as well if he said anything more.

"You'll still report to me, of course, on matters of strategic importance, but otherwise you have full tactical control".

Zander did the only thing he could do. He gave the lombax salute.

"That's what I want to see. I will meet you here at fourteen hundred hours to discuss plans from here, but for now, familiarise yourself with every one of the bridge staff". Leliana then turned on a point and strode out.

Zander stood there stunned.

"Sir?"

He shook himself out of it, then turned back to the female officer.

"Yes?"

"As I was just informing you, Angela Cross asked you to be notified she has left for planet Siberius in the Bogon galaxy. She is of the opinion that you would know why".

"Thank you". Zander could think of more than one reason why she would leave so hurriedly, but he kept that to himself. At least her destination showed she was making use of her time. Zander then decided to make good on Leliana's most recent order. "What's you name, by the way?"

"Senior administrative officer Selena Reid, sir".

Zander twitched at the mention of her surname. "You're related to Mack Reid?"

"He was my paternal uncle, sir".

"I'm… I'm sorry about what happened".

"Permission to speak freely, sir?"

Zander narrowed his eyebrows. "Of course, you don't need permission for that".

"Protocol dictated I do, sir, but thank you regardless".

Zander gestured for her to continue.

"You shouldn't blame yourself for his death, sir. He only did what was expected of all of us, and he was unlucky. I doubt anyone holds you responsible".

"Thank you. I needed that", said Zander, waving his hand for Selena to go.

Selena remained standing where she was.

"Oh, uh… dismissed".

Selena saluted once more, then turned on her heels and disappeared.

_Right. One down, fifty to go_, thought Zander, looking about himself.

/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\

Angela absentmindedly flicked through the star charts as she approached the edge of the Polaris galaxy. She needed the practise with her new fighter's interface.

_New_ was a figurative term, however. Ratchet had insisted that she take his Megacorp Star Explorer, 'for old times' sake'. She smirked at the thought. It seemed like only yesterday that she had been pursued back and forth across Bogon by this very ship, when in reality it had been five years.

How times had changed.

Suddenly, a light on the dashboard started flashing, and alarms began to wail.

_Critical warp failure. Unidentified external disruption_, said the display.

Angela wished for a moment that Megacorp equipped their fighters with AIs, as the lombaxes did with theirs. Listening to a voice was much easier than squinting at the all-too-small text. Still, the ship _was_ free, and it wasn't at all a shabby piece of hardware.

A field of stars replaced the mixed colours of warp space as the star explorer engaged its rocket thrusters, and several immense ships flew into view.

"Angela", said a cool voice over the radio. "Surprised?"

Even before his face flashed onto the star explorer's holoscreen, Angela balled her fists at the mix of emotions _that_ voice stirred up in her.

"Jerec".

/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\

Sasha Phyronix hit the send button on yet _another_ reply to _another_ angry citizen's holo-mail. Something about the sky over Metropolis being a too bright shade of blue.

As well-paying as it was to be mayor of Metropolis, it was also far duller than being captain of the galactic fleet's flagship.

Sasha looked at the subject of the next complaint. 'Disrespect of elderly folk by robotics specialists'. She sighed in frustration. This was the third time she had received the exact same message. At least she wasn't Al, who had to talk to these people personally on a daily basis.

The young Cazar was about to delete the holo-mail, when her office telecommunicator beeped. She lazily pressed _answer_. "Mayor Phyronix speaking, how may I help you today?"

"Sasha! Still mayor?"

"Ratchet? You _did _call the mayor's office".

"Yeah, well… listen. I need a really big favour right now".

"As long as it's better than christening the latest grav-train, anything at all".

"Well… you might not say that after I ask. You see…"

Sasha's eyes steadily grew wider as Ratchet recounted his every move over the past months.

"…and we're going to need your help", he finished.

Sasha immediately stood, throwing her chair against the wall behind her. "A Thirteen!"

Immediately, the robust form of a Galactic Ranger burst through the door.

"Mayor Phyronix! What is it?"

"Get my father on the line, and send word to assemble the fleet!"

"Right away!" The Ranger left just as quicky as he had come, letting the door thud shut behind him.

"I take it that's a yes?" said Ratchet, obviously having heard the exchange.

"Hang in there. We're on our way".

* * *

><p><strong>And there ends The Omniverse Chronicles Book I: A New Kind of Hero. I originally started this out as a way to vent my imagination, which was (and still is) running in overdrive. Almost fifty thousand words later, and I can't believe that it <em>is<em> nearly fifty thousand words. Damn, you'd think I'd be better at getting essays up to _one_ thousand.**

**Thank you again to all my wonderful reviewers. I couldn't have done it without you.**

**Keep any eye out for THE OMNIVERSE CHRONICLES BOOK II: BLACK AND WHITE, appearing soon in a Ratchet & Clank section near you!**

**(very) Shocking revelations will be made, **** will get blown up (several times, on multiple occasions), and the damsel in distress will complain endlessly about being labelled as such.**

**Additionally, the crossover may have been pushed back a whole book, but it is still seriously planned. No more details yet.**

**Minor lombax history lesson (in my own R&C universe): The lombaxes were a pacifist race of renowned engineers for generations, until the Cragmite Empire enslaved them. In order to fight back and lead the rebellion, they completely restructured their society so the each one of them had a military role, and that the military and the government were one and the same. This is why, up until Zander's promotion, Leliana and Jerec were the military commanders, and the Senate took on the role of the war council. Despite not all lombaxes actively fighting, they all have a wrench lying around and are taught how to use it. The wrench itself as a weapon is a remnant of their peaceful past of simply building things, and somehow lombaxes find that no other tool feels quite as comfortable in their hands. This last bit explains why, even though Ratchet was untouched by lombax society, he finds himself preferring to have a wrench, of all weapons, handy at all times.**


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